Beautiful World
by Selphie Kinneas
Summary: AU... Irvine just wanted to show Seifer up in a small bet. A bet never came with so much extra baggage... In such a beautiful world, it's simple to get lost in drama, trouble, and love. Chp39: While the SeeDs are in Trabia, Irvine goes to find Selphie but will it be all he hoped it would? Meanwhile the SeeDs try to please their new wealthy client.
1. Prelude

_H_ello my dear, dear readers! This is a shot at actual, dum dum dum GOOD WRITING. Let's see how I do? . Anyways, to all those who read this I want to thank you. To those who review I want to thank you more! Yes, there are nearly all couples mentioned in this story, focus in this order, Selvine, Quifer, Squinoa, Zell x Library Girl.

**Rated mature for sexual content, language, and violence**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the characters or settings of Final Fantasy VIII  
**

(All formalities out of the way, no reporting me I hope . Enjoy the story!)

This prelude isn't really terribly important. A historical rundown if you'd like. Please enjoy my tale!

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"_It's only love"_

_Beautiful World  
Prelude_

The world was in ultimate terror when Sorceresses Ultemecia and her apprentice Adel took over. The first Sorceress war took many generations to end, all armies united as one to destroy the dictator Ultemecia. Adel stood behind her in every way. Many men lost their lives in attempt to stop her; it was in this time the first Lunar Cry occurred destroying all human civilization in the Centra.

The Centra continent however was one of the main places for orphanage keepers. After the cities fell to the monsters that overran them, the orphanages too stopped. The first war killed hundreds of thousands of men around the world, but there were few orphans since the battles never took place in towns. The war was ending when a young Galbadian soldier named Laguna Loire and his friends joined the army. They joined part when Ultmecia found herself finally conquered by the help of a young girl named Ellone.

During this time of the war, that Laguna made it his solemn duty to protect the young girl who he came to love deeply. When Ultemecia fell she tried desperately to destroy Ellone with her, and her protector took the harsh assault. Ellone wept dearly and refused to leave Laguna's side as he recovered, her adopted mother in Winhill, Raine, grew impatient and pleaded for her child to return. The Galbadian army general, Fury Caraway, that Laguna be further stationed in Winhill so that young Ellone would cooperate, decided it.

In Winhill, Laguna recovered in a few years doing his best to protect people while doing so. During this time, Ellone made her responsibility to ensure her adopted mother and her 'Uncle Laguna' fell in love. It was fate waiting to happen even without Ellone's help, after months and even a year of childish arguments the two fell deeply in love and married.

Citizens all over the world had already begun repairing from the Sorceress War. What many people neglected was that Adel was still alive, just in hiding. After a good amount of peace, Adel came to power with the added magic from her master Ultemecia. Adel wanted to use Ellone as a source of power that Ultemecia herself was never able to get. She first conquered Esther by threatening a Lunar Cry upon their nation if she was not announced Queen. The people obeyed fearing the same fate as the Centra.

When news reached Winhill Adel was out to find 'Ellone', Laguna rejoined the army to stop whom it was threatening his Ellone. Ellone was a merely seven years old and Laguna had not spent more than a year married in peace.

Adel in power was far worse than Ultemecia. She burned cities killing countless families and destroyed uncountable units of armies. With Esther and Ultemecia's past power connected with her own, she was unstoppable.

Laguna had returned. He arrived to Esthar with his regiment for the war. A former soldier from the first Sorceress War recognized Laguna at once as the man who protected Ellone. He pleaded him to rebel in secret against Adel and put him in replacement.

After years of war, Laguna enjoyed that idea and planned for months with a small group rebelling against the Queen. The rebels tried their best to keep themselves hidden, but Adel soon discovered them and punished the entire nation by summoning the Lunar Cry onto Esther.

For a year, people in Esther suffered more than any other nation. Finally, Laguna found a way to stop the evil monarch in her thrown. He set a trap and had her caught in a small sealing cage using a hologram of Ellone as bait. Once sealed, Laguna led an attack on her while she was defenseless. Once dead, Adel left her powers to the young girl she hunted, Ellone.

After the death of the Sorceress and end of the second Sorceress War, Laguna was presented title of President of Esther. He was overcome by joy and wished to fetch his wife and Ellone from Winhill as soon as he could.

When Laguna arrived to the quiet town, he discovered Raine had fallen ill a few months after his leave. She grew worse with each day and when she had learned news that she was pregnant, she was happy but ill. As she became weaker and weaker, Esther soldiers penetrated the town's small defense and held everyone within it captive. During this hostage, Raine gave birth and died. Ellone and a young florist helped raise the child for the years that they were locked in. With Adel vanquished, the soldiers sent all mother-less children to orphanages.

With the Centra destroyed only a few orphanages remained around the world. Laguna searched long and hard for his Ellone and child but was unsuccessful. In his failure, Laguna gave all his time and effort to take command of reconstruction. For half a decade, he devised smart plans to have all nations back on their feet.

Donations to each nation were made and the Lunar Cry's damage was being taken care of. After the five years were over Laguna became busy with matters dealing only with Esther, and all rulers acted the same. It was in this time small matters such as orphans were forgotten.

At the beginning of the five years of reconstruction a living Sorceress named Edea took children in and founded a new home she and her husband called, "Garden." They decided to train children to grow up and protect the world from evil Sorceresses, for sorcery never dies. Galbadia and Trabia followed Edea's idea.

Orphans, such as a young boy named Squall Leonhart found places to call home in Gardens. On a visit to Balamb Garden Laguna found his long lost Ellone as a student. He celebrated and begged Edea and her husband to allow him to take her, and they had only one objection. Apparently, Ellone had a younger brother who was overprotective and refused her to leave. It was that day that Laguna Loire found his son.

The idea of Garden was a sufficient replacement for orphanages until parents began sending children to Gardens as a form of boarding school. When being paid to take in a child, Gardens began having less room for orphans and more for paid students. Galbadia Garden was the largest one housing the most orphans, after awhile the orphans were transferred to Balamb, or Edea's Garden. These two being the largest Gardens they maintained their nation's orphans and were able to keep it stable. Further north in an already poor nation, Trabia suffered terribly. Their Garden had few paying students, and their nation had far too many orphans, and they had lost too much in the passed wars to regain their strength. After the other rulers forgot about helping each other out Trabia could only keep the Garden open for as many students as there was room for, and that was not many.

After the second war orphans were distributed evenly throughout the nations, all nations were able to accept and take care of the children except Trabia. The generation grew up ill educated with beggars and other street jobs. There were little careers to be found, and both men and women made abhorrent choices to stay alive.

Through this all a young girl named Selphie Tilmitt, who lost her parents a few weeks after birth, was sent under the care of Trabia. While reconstruction she was taken good care of and was taught to read and write. Afterwards at age six, she was left to live on the streets with other beggars praying that someday things would turn up.

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_Poverty is the parent of revolution and crime._

_**--**__**Aristotle**_

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	2. Chapter 1

_"Moshimo negai hitotsu dake kanua nara..."  
("If one of my wishes were to come true...")_

_Beautiful World  
Chapter One _

The streets of Trabia, stood in a bleak gray of dirtied snow.

The air was so cold it would hurt to breathe. The frost would punish the people who traversed the lanes. None would stay outdoors long. If one would inhale, they could feel their lungs freezing, trembling in the cold, and shaking in ice.

People could not use their noses outdoors, which was an advantage on their part. If they could, the odors of rotting corpses, not always dead but teetering with the line of it could capture them into nausea. Trash littered the ground and ill animals crawled amongst the sewers. The putrid smells that crept from the pit of despair destroyed the city. Thank goodness, they couldn't smell.

To add to this miserable shape of being, beggars populated the streets and alleys of Trabia far more than the vermin. Parasites that crowded themselves into wealthy areas, found themselves growing no matter how many of them passed away. They crawled on the ground as animals pleading and begging any passerby and tourist as though they were starving cats. Their limbs too fragile and broke to do anything but hold a hand out and cry. Even cats outdid beggars.

All of these flaws, all these blemishes, all these mistakes, this pathetic excuse of a city stood, concealed under the falling snow.

Standing from the frozen grounds were beautiful fountains. Nothing stood more proud than the tall monuments of past rulers, and that had happened before the Sorceress Wars. Very few remained buried by the endlessly falling snow. Trabia's main city had one famous fountain that stood still. In dreams that it would one day rise from its ashes, the magical fountain stood several feet high. It had intricate designs as though five artisans spent their life on it. The designs were of angels floating and gliding around the base, the sides, and the topper was a beautiful spirit. Water no longer flowed through the frozen rock.

Everyone knew and remembered the beautiful boulder as Paradise Fountain. For several reasons that no one would utter.

The fountain had a great deal of people surrounding it daily. A great handful people never left the site of Paradise hoping they would one are alive to see all Trabia to resemble it.

Another place that crowded people amongst the walls like chattel or rats in a cage was the best hotel in Trabia. Many tourists came to Trabia and all came to this hotel. The minute they stepped out of their warm elegant lodge beggars pleading and screaming for mercy mobbed them.

Amongst them was one young girl squeezed until her lungs could not grasp one breath of air. Her weak frail limbs cracked against the pressure from both sides of her. She kept her eye closed and her digits under her chin. Her body clustered to form a small ball like a pill bug in fear.

Her hair was soft chestnut brown swaying gracefully in the wind. Though concealed, her irises were the brightest of emerald that shown like the plants of a tropical forest.

Slowly she placed a weak hand on her cheek, the skin upon it, cracked and disfigured from the harsh climate. Rashes and scars ran the majority of it. Her shivering only made her skin look sickly and disgusting. Had she not been wearing clothes the people would never distinguish her scrawny figure from the snow. Her body was as pale a dead man. Who was to say she was not a dead man?

Her name was Selphie.

Age 14, one of the 'lucky' of the beggars with all her limbs intact and body not yet swallowed by the curse of death.

Every person looked very much alike, their face dirtied, pale skin, moth eaten coats if any at all, hair a bit unruly if not flattened by the cold altogether, empty palms, and jittering teeth. The assembly line of identical pictures was an unbearable sight. It was because of this that most tourists found it necessary to give a coin or one gil to each little homeless person. Most civilization in Trabia thrived on these few coins. A chain reaction started from pity of the tourists and continued through. The beggars received the money, then bought whatever they could from the cheapest vendor, the vendor paid their taxes to the government, and the government claimed to return it back to the poor. If the last stage in the process fully went out, then Trabia may not have been in such a state. Alas, the money seemed to vanish when it reached the greedy government's hands.

Selphie sighed helplessly as she rubbed her hands. She stood slowly and looked about. Her tired eyes fell wearily as she forced them open. Snow fell softly and rested on her eyelids.

"Selphie! Sit back down, you'll lose your place." A random haggard woman from the wall opposite of the line Selphie had risen from shouted weakly. Her fragile voice cracked as she coughed fiercely. The young brunette turned gradually with all energy she had left and dragged herself, foot by foot to the woman. One yard down, Selphie exhaled watching the wisp of frost emit from her mouth. Another yard passed, cold water seeped through the damaged soles of her shoes. Two more yards further and the young lass collapsed upon her own knees and started a fit of coughs.

The woman she was slowly making way to, had her eyes widened with fear. She reached a hand backwards against the wall she was leaning against and pushed her forward. Selphie held her hand before her mouth unceasingly coughing. "Darling—" She whispered, "I'm coming." Tears of pain fell from her eyes as she found herself on her feet. She hadn't walked further than two feet when she saw red drip from Selphie's pale hands. With tears blinding her, the woman gathered her strength and exhaled all volume from her lungs,

"Hyne have mercy! She's bleeding, somebody please help her!" Her fallen trail of tears frost to her face as she concluded and whispered, "Hyne save us all…"

From all around her tourists passed ignorantly, a few women looked rather concerned but hurried away by their husbands. Selphie looked drowsily to the sky as she removed her bloodstained hand from her mouth and pressed it against the stone ground bracing her dropping trickles of crimson.

"Hyne have mercy! Hyne have mercy!"

Slowly and surely, Selphie saw her vision becoming increasingly unclear and her arms failing to stand straight as she rested her shoulder gently on the frozen ground still coughing, still breathing, and still bleeding.

"She's just a child! Trade my health for hers; I've lived long enough! Hyne have mercy! Why must good die young?!"

Sounds of the woman's futile screams seem to die down as the echoes of a hard sole hitting stone replaced it. Louder and louder, it became. Selphie breathed out watching the white float above her as a man came into view. His hair was slick black and he wore a handsome coat and glossy leather gloves. He knelt down, grasped her by the shoulders, and brought his lips very near her ears. "Don't worry." He whispered.

…………………

The room where Selphie awoke was warm, however she did not feel it herself. Her eyes opened very slowly to the lights that shined overhead. She yawned softly as she noticed a woman dressed in white pants and a shirt stood near chronicling notes on a clipboard.

"Who're you?" Selphie said bluntly.

"Nurse Resh, any other questions?" She raised an eyebrow in a very matter-of-factly way.

Selphie shook her head gradually as she assumed herself to be dreaming. Her back was sore and bruised but she never felt at more ease. It was so peaceful in the room. She turned her head to the right and saw a glass window showing empty snow covered fields with snow falling gracefully. A smile touched her lips as she enjoyed the scene. The frigid weather in the Trabia never looked so beautiful.

"Awake are you?" A deep voice called.

With a small jerk Selphie set eyes on the producer of the voice. He was a tall man in a well-creased business suit. His face said age resided within it but not too much. His hair was black as ebony, combed and gelled into place. His features were very sharp with a small nose and thin brown eyes. He looked healthily slender.

Selphie pushed herself back against the bed. The man smiled and flashed his perfectly white teeth. He advanced toward her, every step taken with poise and panache. "Your friends say your name is Selphie, is that correct?" The answer was silent but Selphie nodded. "Usually I don't care to stop but that lady was adamant about someone fetching you to a hospital. I couldn't pass that easily, it'd be far too cruel after all the effort she put in, don't you think?"

"S-She told me not to get up." Selphie replied confused. The man laughed heartily.

"You're not in trouble my dear." He rested a leg on the bed.

"I'm not? But I must've put you through lots—"

"It's fine my dear, rest your pretty head."

His words sounded very reassuring as Selphie did exactly as he said. She relaxed her limbs and felt embraced by the small hospital cot.

"I am terribly sorry this was the most hospitable the hospital could be." The man chuckled at his pun. Selphie turned her eyes to him confused. "What I mean is I couldn't make you any more comfortable. My apologies."

Selphie nearly gagged as she sat straight again, "No I'm happy— really comfortable." The man gave a small grin as he lifted his leg off the bed and advanced further towards her and brushed a few strands of hair from her face. His eyes were kind and thoughtful against Selphie's frightened pupils.

"I understand you must be very afraid right now. Rest assured nothing will happen to you. It's alright you have no more to fear." The words seemed to have no avail on Selphie as she began shivering. The response may not have occurred to him as he continued and softly stroked her pale cheek, "It's such a shame that someone with as lovely looks as you was a beggar." He said quietly.

With fear at its point Selphie started to scream madly. "WHERE AM I? I WANT TO GO HOME! PLEASE!"

The stranger jumped back with his hands raised slightly. "Selphie please maintain yourself! I beg your pardon I did not mean to upset you. I beg of you calm down."

A nurse rushed in, "What's the problem sir?" She asked hastily. The man gulped and gestured his hand for the nurse to leave. The nurse nodded and stepped back hesitantly until she was out of the room.

Selphie had forming tears, "Who are you?" She cried weakly. The man returned to his former position beside Selphie. He flashed his teeth quickly and bowed his head.

"My dear I am a friend. You may call me Mr. Devin. I hope you can trust me." He held out a hand. Selphie's limp hand crawled from her sheets and met his warm palm, a weak grin spread across her face. After all, he'd given her no reason why she shouldn't trust him. Devin shook Selphie's hand as he took a few paces back and sat at the foot of the bed. "Why don't you tell me a tad about yourself?"

Selphie opened her mouth to reply, but what was there to say?

_I'm an orphan… I'm a beggar… I'm a homeless girl… I'm worthless…_

"I can read." She said finally. Devin laughed upon hearing her. He looked her way and saw she was quite serious about her response. He gulped down his laughter and smiled.

"How impressive, it is rare to see a girl of your status to be literate." Selphie fiddled with the edges of her sheet uncomfortably. Devin stood and looked at a shiny silver watch around his wrist, "It looks as though I must be elsewhere." He looked back to the young brunette and grinned sweetly, "I shall return soon, you've been here nearly a week it's not too far now that you'll be discharged. I implore you to relax and rest your beautiful head. Can you do that for me Selphie?"

Closing her eyes she nodded, Devin smiled and came to her side. He pressed his lips softly against her forehead. "That's a good girl. You just sit there and look lovely, I'll be back later on today."

Devin walked out of the room and the Nurse reentered. She took small steps and pulled the window curtains closed. "Is there anything at all I can do for you miss?" She grinned. Selphie shook her head; she was too confused to figure anything out at all. Who was Mr. Devin? Why did he want to help her? She gripped the sheets and shuddered. It mattered not anymore, who he was and why he came; all that mattered was he wanted to help her. Selphie bit her lip; the least she could do was trust him.

Hours in the room passed by through the most calm sleep Selphie had ever received. The padding against her sore muscles was so soothing. The clock had struck 5o'clock when Mr. Devin returned to the ward. He was still smiling cheerfully.

"I hope you enjoyed yourself my dear." He said quietly trying not to disturb her. Selphie was already half awake and turned to him.

"The best." She replied happily but softly. Devin smiled and took a seat again.

"The doctors say you can leave tomorrow."

Although for most patients, this was apparently 'good' news Selphie found it despairing that she had to return to the streets tomorrow. She looked sadly at the ground. "Are you sure?"

Devin was appalled at the reaction. He rubbed his chin in wonder what could be upsetting her. "Why do you look so morose my dear?" Selphie didn't raise her head, instead she looked gloomily at his feet.

"I don't want to go back tomorrow." She uttered. Devin's eyes widened as he slowly began to laugh again. Selphie confused returned her gaze to Devin. She could not fathom what was so amusing to Mr. Devin. Devin held out a hand to excuse him for laughing.

"Oh my dear— hahah— there's no need to fret, you're not going 'back' tomorrow. You'll just be leaving the hospital. You've been here well over a week. I'm glad you've finally recovered. Now then are there any more problems?"

_Not going back? Then where will I be going? _Selphie's shining eyes reflected Devin's kind face. "None my dear?" _Just one…_

"If not I guess I shall take my leave, I will see you tomorrow." Devin shuffled to his feet and left Selphie a peck on the forehead. He bowed his head gently and waved merrily as he exited the room.

_Who are you?_

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_Where justice is denied, where poverty is enforced, where ignorance prevails, and where any one class is made to feel that society is in an organized conspiracy to oppress, rob, and degrade them, neither persons nor property will be safe._

_--__Frederick Douglass_

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	3. Chapter 2

_"Kimi no soba de nemurasete,"  
("I would want to sleep by you,")_

_Beautiful World  
Chapter Two_

As Mr. Devin said, the next morning arrived and the doctors discharged her. Mr. Devin was already there when she woke up. He gave a smile to her as her eyes opened. In a few moments, he was off with the doctors obviously signing off discharge papers.

It was odd but Selphie had already felt trusting of Mr. Devin. Through all the confusion from the other day, she was almost happy to see him when she awoke. When he returned in the room, she was ecstatic when he told her she wasn't going back to the streets. Curiosity leaked through her mind on where she would be going but it wasn't a huge matter.

Dressed in new clothing, Selphie was in awe on the great condition the cloth was. The pants were arm and black. There was not a single fray in the thick woolen tunicAs she exited the hospital with a new jacket she was in a daze, Mr. Devin walked at her side. How could all that had happen been true?

Selphie watched the snowflakes fall slowly and touch her nose; she stayed occupied looking at the mere piece of ice melting from the warmth of her skin.

"Selphie?" She heard Mr. Devin's voice as she snapped out of her daydream and looked towards him as he held the back door of a luxurious car open for her. Her mouth gaped ajar; she slowly found her feet walking her closer to it. With almost no hesitation, she was in the car and Mr. Devin beside her. The door closed as Mr. Devin snapped to a driver in the front seat.

It was uncanny at what was happening. There was such little time to comprehend it all. Selphie felt dizzy as she rested her hand against her temples for the first time feeling warmth from her usually frigidly frozen fingers. She felt a closing on her hand, firm yet gentle. Her body jerked as she twisted uncomfortably towards Mr. Devin who held her small limb.

"Is there something wrong?" He asked with a smile against his strong jaw. Just his look sent Selphie turning a bright shade of pink, her pale cheeks never gave her the idea she could do such a feat. Mr. Devin released his hand and crossed his legs. "We'll be heading to my estate soon. It isn't near the crowded plazas, I hope you can accustom yourself to that."

Selphie gagged as she grasped her thighs in shock, his estate? That's where she was going? It wasn't that she hadn't believed his earlier comment but she thought he'd send her to another orphanage or something along those lines. This wasn't her predication at all. Some how, she felt attached to Mr. Devin's presence already. It was an odd feeling— perhaps that feeling that she had worth?

Mr. Devin didn't see Selphie's reaction, nor did he expect her to have a negative response. His head looked to the window. Selphie took the opportunity to observe him. It was obvious he was wealthy, he didn't look very old. His hair was still dark midnight, his skin flawless and colored from nourishment. There were bulges on him; it was a simple assumption that he was muscular. He was… very handsome. Selphie blushed again and turned away.

Being lost in thought, the car-ride passed by quickly for her. When Selphie raised her gaze to the estate in which they were coming near she was in shock.

Although snow ran deep covering all tree limbs, grass, driveway, and rooftops the estate looked as though it belonged to a summer time landscape picture. The driveway was wide and circular running around an extravagant fountain or carved swans that had thin icicles running along it. The lawn and land about the household was wide and went a great distance. The thick black gating could barely make out apart from the foggy scene.

The car halted at the top of the circular driveway. The chauffer and Mr. Devin both stepped out naturally, however Selphie remained lost in a daze as she laid eyes on a mansion that competed against he beautiful hotel she used to sit outside of. The west and east wings had tall pointing towers, the front entrance jutted outward with grand doors with large silver handles. The house in the center looked that of a castle all in pink granite.

"Selphie?" Blinking a few times to regain thought of what was going on Selphie noticed her door open and Mr. Devin standing outside with a kind hand held towards her. Gratefully she took it stepping carefully out of the luxurious car. Two menservants had appeared at the entrance of the manor with the doors held open revealing a white marble hall with a crystal chandelier. The room felt so warm the moment you entered.

Mr. Devin, still holding Selphie's small hand stopped at the center of the hall. Several servants stood before him, bowing slightly. "Everyone," He called proudly resulting in more servants coming to the front. "I'd like to introduce Selphie Tilmitt. She will be my guest, please treat her with utmost generosity. Have a suite prepared for her at the soonest. All her needs must be attended too; I leave the details to you all."

The servants all eyes Selphie carefully, some bowed his or her heads respectfully, some kept their awkward stare, others left quietly. Mr. Devin released Selphie's hand and turned his face to her. "Please enjoy yourself here. I only wish I could stay and accompany you longer however I have some work to attend to. My servants will give you anything you need." He flashed a strong grin and walked off leaving Selphie red in the face.

He strutted off deeper into the mansion along with two servants. Selphie observed as one by one the maids and butlers returned to their duties.

"Madam?"

Selphie spun quickly to the direction of the voice. It was a slender maid with an oval face. She looked only a few years older than Selphie and had a straight look. "I supposed it's best I take care of you before the master thinks we're slacking off on his honored guest. Come with me." The maid walked off hastily with Selphie close behind, still quiet as ever.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

"This shall serve as your quarters miss,"

Selphie stepped about hesitantly as she looked around the room. It had a high ceiling with a crystal chandelier coming down, with articulate carvings of angels surrounding it. There were two large windows with a wide smooth white marble fireplace in the center. Thick royal blue drapes made of silk bordered the edges of the window, tied to the side with a golden rope. The furniture was all white painted wood with marble tops, a grand king bed in the center, an armoire before it, a nightstand beside it, a enormous dresser on the wall where the door was. There was a gold and white rimmed vanity a few feet from the armoire, a small box on legs looking object in the corner of the room, all sprinkled with gold ornaments and royal blue tapestries and covers.

"Mr. Devin has had us prepare your wardrobe, you'll be able to find it in the dresser and armoire. The washroom is across your room, and if you need anything any of staff will be more than willing to help." The maid sounded monotone and irritated as she left shutting the door loudly behind her.

With the maid gone, Selphie began searching the room with deep interest. Before the fireplace were two blue velvet chairs, Selphie leapt on one and gazed out the window watching the snowfall. This was real; reality— who knew it could be such a fantasy?

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

In a deep green, and emerald marble parlor sat Mr. Devin with a daily in his hands reading it to himself while sipping coffee. It had been so far a pleasant day, and most days were when you were rich enough to buy nearly all of Trabia.

Many rich businessmen lived in Trabia, or rather had estates and factories there. Land was cheap, labor was cheap, and life in general was so easily accessible to those of wealth it was foolish not to take advantage of it. Mr. Devin was a simple business man who's main industry revolved in Trabia, over the years he grew successful and became world renowned for his fur coats.

Mr. Devin held his coffee to his lips and sipped peacefully. As he set it down the sound of door's opening appeared. Turning around, Mr. Devin saw a young man in a butler's suit walking hastily to him. The butler bowed and held a small slip of paper outward.

"Sir, a message arrived by phone for you earlier today. While you were at the office sir, please excuse its tardiness." The man bowed again and walked out. Mr. Devin gave a look to the small square sheet and read it to himself. As his eyes reached the last sentence his eyes budged and his grip tightened.

"WHAT?! HOW CAN THIS HAPPEN! SOMEONE GET IN HERE NOW!" As soon as he had shouted, some maid came rushing in.

"Yes sir, what's wrong?" She asked in a panicking voice. Devin gave her a gaze, took a deep breath and reread the paper. He sighed softly and let his eyelids cover his eyes.

A thin smile touched his lips as he returned his vision to the maid, "I suppose it doesn't have to be much of a problem. I do have time after all, have the car ready for me, I'm paying a visit to someone. I'll be back for supper so no delaying it." Devin stood brushed his broad shoulders and took his leave from the room.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Selphie looked herself through the large mirror. She found herself a soft yellow sweater along with a long black skirt in her wardrobe. She spun around happily looking at her reflection. Her cheeks were sunken in, and her face pale and bony however for the first time in so many years she had a wide smile covering it all.

She spent nearly an hour playing with the various gold ornaments that glittered in the room's light. Temptation to jump madly on the large squishy bed crawled up her spin the entire time, however Selphie fought it. Being in a manor, dressing properly for once gave her the idea to try to act lady like.

Her next adventure was the vanity table; she sat on the patted seat and carefully inspected her face. There was a heavy hairbrush along with a hand mirror on the surface of the table. She held the mirror to her face and pushed her hair back trying to mimic a movie star.

The room and all its wonder kept Selphie occupied all day. Maids came and knocked every once and while to serve lunch, or help her with anything she might need, Selphie only said she was fine.

As the snow grew heavier outdoors Selphie decided to brush up and mimic all the rich tourists she'd seen in her life. She sat on the blue seats by the fireplace and pushed her back sitting straight.

"Mr. Devin, your house is so pretty!" She smiled at the invisible person in the chair beside her. "You're so lucky to live here." She leaned her head back and thought deeply, what if she still was dreaming?

Sunset came sooner than Selphie had expected as a maid came in abruptly and eyed Selphie carefully. "Dinner is to be served soon miss. Shall we get you prepared?"

Innocently, Selphie stood straight to show her attire. The maid groaned and went through the drawers in aggravation. In the middle of her search she stopped and looked to Selphie who seemed utterly confused, "Miss," She began.

Selphie simply nodded her head and obediently walked to the maid and stood. "Miss I mean no offense, but dinner is a rather… a daily special occasion. You must dress properly." This didn't make any sense still for the fact Selphie was wearing the best clothes she had her entire life.

A few moments later, the maid had pulled a long black dress with a blue top that had frilly short sleeves. Selphie wore black stockings and flat shoes to match it. The maid brushed her locks and strung a small blue pendant of a star about her neck. After she was ready… Selphie could barely recognize herself in the mirror.

"Miss, please hurry. Mr. Devin will be here soon."

The words came as a shock to Selphie as she turned happily to the maid, "I eat with Mr. Devin?" The words slipped her mouth oozing with excitement. The maid gave a small nod, and before she could turn the knob Selphie was ahead of her ready to find herself along the way to the dining hall.

The grand stair well was white creamy stone with a thick banister. It stood across the entrance hall. The stair well was incredibly wide, so wide that five large people could easily stand side by side on the top stair.

Selphie behind the maid was very unaccustomed to the tight little black shoes she wore. The maid, who had made stair climbing second nature, glided down the stairs with ease. Selphie took one small step at a time,

"Ah Selphie!"

Upon hearing Mr. Devin's kind familiar voice, Selphie's head jerked to quickly as she lost balanced and slipped her next step, following that she began rolling stair by stair to the bottom.

The entire fall she gave not one squeak of pain, once she reached the bottom she attempted to raise herself to her feet before Mr. Devin reached her. Too late, she found herself surrounded by servants and of course Mr. Devin who held her in his arms.

"Selphie!" He called her name clearly, and loudly. Selphie kept her eyes shut too embarrassed to face Mr. Devin. "Oh no, Selphie please answer me." He pleaded more gently.

Weakly Selphie lifted an eyelid. She caught Mr. Devin changing his worried glance to a smile. With that, she opened both her eyes and grinned herself. "I'm okay," She said proudly. She spoke far too soon; as soon as the servants helped her to her feet, she felt sore aches all over. Pain shot up and down her back and she fell straight to her knees again.

Tears came into her eyes as she felt pain and humility. She practiced all day to show her manners to Mr. Devin and she fell flat on her face. She felt a warm presence on her head, she turned upwards and Mr. Devin smiled to her small face.

"Well then, perhaps a room downstairs would have been more suitable." He released a small chuckle, "I am glad that I didn't have you on the top floor." Remembering the large sight when she first arrived Selphie dreaded to think how many flights it took to reach the top floor.

A manservant carried Selphie to a sitting lounge draped in gold. It seemed a place where guests would meet however for that moment it became a temporary dining place. Mr. Devin even joined her as all the servants placed their dinners before them. Selphie's mouth watered as she laid eyes on her meal.

Although she had bruises all over her body, Selphie never went to sleep in more comfort in her life.

--------------------

_Forget injuries, never forget kindnesses._

_--__Confucius_

--------------------


	4. Chapter 3

"_Donna basho demo ii yo"  
__("Anywhere will do")_

_Beautiful World  
__Chapter Three_

Selphie was used to pain, she had been living on the streets the majority of her life. The next morning she was able to move on her own. The pampering of maids coming to dress her for every meal and lead to the most delicious meals ever was still surreal.

It was almost like having a child in the manor. Selphie spent so many hours exploring the many halls, rooms, lounges, parlors, dining halls, and views the manor held. She had yet to go outdoors. Sometime during the week, Selphie located a ballroom. A servant had ordered her to leave the room, but she vowed to return there.

Most nights the maid came early to dress Selphie for dinner. Dinner clothes were the finest she would wear all day. With so many free hours, she had practiced climbing the stairs. She felt like a princess walking down, as silly as she looked constantly tossing her hair about.

Selphie was wearing a silky light blue skirt that had some waving room with a black tank top. A sky blue sweater with a shining brooch covered her arms and half her torso. She stood straight and as lady like as her knowledge led her to believe. Mr. Devin returned home at the same time each night. He came dressed in his stylish suits, his hair gelled back and a kind look every night.

"Ah Selphie, don't you look lovely?" He smiled taking her fragile arm that had grown dramatically since she arrived. "What may I ask have you been entertaining yourself with today?"

Nodding her head slightly Selphie leaned it to a side and smiled, "Exploring of course!" She giggled. Mr. Devin gave a hearty smile and held her fragile hand.

"My appetite has not yet piqued, I wonder if perhaps you'd like to do something before supper?" Selphie felt so cozy, so safe in Mr. Devin's firm grip. Involuntarily her head nodded. He flashed his white teeth at her and bowed his head, "Then my dear, what shall we do?"

All thoughts went blank suddenly, she grinned weakly a bit confused. With a small shrug, she only heard Devin laugh as a reply. Devin started speaking but Selphie zoned out for a moment recalling the beautiful dim ballroom she saw.

"Dance!"

"Come again?"

Selphie bit her lip and repeated herself, "Can we dance?" She gulped hard nervously. Mr. Devin thought for a few minutes while walking ahead, Selphie's arm still with him.

"You know," Selphie turned her head immediately, "I haven't danced in years." The idea slowly began to drown in Selphie's mind. "What a fine idea love, I have the finest ballroom for you to see come, come!"

Mr. Devin's pace quickened as the two sped walked through a few corridors to a pair of large decorated doors. Devin clapped and called out messaging servants to his aide. Within moments, the doors were opened, the lights lit, and the ballroom gleamed so many tints of gold Selphie couldn't believe so much shine could be in one set of closed walls.

"This room has been so lonesome," Devin sighed.

"Let's cheer it up!" Selphie squeaked.

Only smiling Mr. Devin held out his hand and bowed from his waist. Confused to respond Selphie did the exact same action. At this, he chuckled heartily. "How silly of me, I should have realized you haven't dance before. Well love, ladies such as yourself curtsy." Devin mimicked a girl curtsying as Selphie followed.

"Now shall we start again?" He asked reassuringly. Grinning widely, Selphie accepted as the two bowed and curtsied. They locked hands and took a moment to secure the proper posture. Then safely Devin took a step waiting for Selphie to follow. With caution, Selphie repeated Devin's moves and gasped in surprise when he dipped her.

Mr. Devin's hold on her had been firm yet relaxed. With her head close to the floor, Selphie gazed into her partner's eyes. They gave a tender, longing look. Smiling, Selphie felt elated yet surprised as Devin sprung her to her feet and they glided across the lighted floor. A good portion of the time Selphie had kept her eyes glued to the floor to assure she was doing exactly as Mr. Devin did.

Selphie felt a sensation run down her back when Mr. Devin whispered into her ear, "Are you enjoying my dear?"

The two came to a halt before Selphie could reply. Devin's attention then averted to a maid who stood at the entrance of the room. Her face showed an urgent look. Releasing his grip, Devin gradually walked away from Selphie. "Pardon me, I shall see you at dinner."

Just like that, Selphie stood alone in the room with the echoes of Devin's shoes fading away. Rubbing her arms, she released a heavy sigh.

To her dismay, she did not see Mr. Devin at dinner. The table was set elegantly as every night but she sat alone despairingly waiting for the chair before her to attain its missing person. Selphie sat and ate slower than ever. She took several helpings, against the wishes of the servants.

No matter how long she delayed Devin never arrived. She dragged her feet to her quarters and buried herself underneath the thick covers. The winds mourned outside as it hid the sounds of a sad sniffling.

''''''''''''''''''''

"Man, you don't waste a minute do you?"

Devin entered a damp room of a weak foundation. The walls begged for a new coat of paint, the windows pleaded washing, and the furniture cried replacing. A smell of wet wood and moss filled the room. Faintly, the odor from the outdoors trash leaked in as well.

"Sit, won't you?" The owner of the voice gestured to a ripped chair that sat unhappily before his rickety desk.

"I'd rather I stand. I don't intend to stay too long." Devin brushed his shoulders patting his strong shoulders and sweeping off the snow. He stood a strong step letting the heel of his shoe creak the floorboards loudly. "I have a favor to ask of you."

The man behind the desk was half concealed by darkness, what could be seen of him was his clothes, expensive but ill of proper care. His hands were rough and scaly folded on his desktop. A laugh escaped him, an unpleasant chuckle. "I knew it! Sooner or later you were going to ask me back for something okay so what is it?"

With poise and cautious movement, Devin advanced closer to the desk. "I need you to recruit someone for me."

Yellow teeth glinted slyly from the man's putrid mouth. His laugh continued hard and cruel almost mocking Mr. Devin's request. "I'm liking this favor. Tell me who is she?"

A stern face came across Devin. "Don't misunderstand me, she is not for you. Simply under your staff, do I make myself clear?" He nearly shouted.

The grin dissolved to a grimace. "I knew there was a bad to this. Well out with it why do you need her with me? Why so protective?"

"I don't need to reply to you, just accept it."

"The hell I will, you don't make me do anything!"

Devin closed his eyes and sighed, he turned around slowly and made way to the door. His hand reached for the doorknob as he stopped. "Just remember this." He began in a voice of acid, "I gave you the funds to keep your clothes on your back, to keep your women from killing you when they starved, to protect all of you when the rain grew hard. My generosity is the only reason you exist. No friend, no matter how close would ever do such favors."

A scoff escaped the man, "Pu-leese, we were buds in school. You owe me from then. Don't bring this on me like I still owe you Devin. I don't."

"Perhaps, but if we don't owe each other a thing, than I suppose there isn't a thing stopping me from reporting you."

Gagging a reply the man leapt up and jutted a hand out towards Mr. Devin grasping his shoulder in his weak dirtied hands. "You wouldn't—!"

A wry smile started to twitch on Devin's lips. "I can't seem to find a reason to stop me." He gently put his hand over his shoulder and plucked the hand off him as though it was an insect.

As his hand fell from Mr. Devin's shoulder the rest of the man collapsed on the floor. He released a heavy sigh and moaned, "Fine Devin… you win. Let me just meet her."

After replacing his coat on his shoulders, Devin bowed his head politely with a glint of victory shining in his iris. "Glad you see it my way. Dinner tomorrow old friend?" Before the ruined man replied Devin had exited the room and let the door shut creating a thick cloud of dust.

'''''''''''''

Selphie sat cuddling her legs inward at the top stair of the grand staircase. She hadn't seen Devin since last night. She rocked gently and sighed. _He's busy_. All day the maids had told her the same thing whenever she asked about him. All day the maids had told her the same thing whenever she asked about him. Was Mr. Devin angered with her?

She miserably rose, dragged herself down the stairs, and made it to the last step. Bored, she pivoted and groaned. Easily she could go exploring in the large mansion again but the thought of Mr. Devin upset with her pinched her, distracted her.

"Miss," A maid came hurrying down the stairs. Selphie turned about and looked at her hopefully. "Miss," She continued, "Mr. Devin has sent word for you to prepare he's taking you out for dinner today."

Selphie could barely breath, her excitement kept her locked in place. She nodded vigorously as the maid started heading up the stairs again. As though shooting stars were at her feet, she glided up the stairs behind her. A smile shined and shamed a summer's sun plastered across her face. When she arrived to her room, Selphie found a simple yet elegant dress displayed for her.

It didn't take long for Selphie to prepare, the maids came to help her with her gravity defying hair, which in the end looked the exact same, and her pale cheeks which with blush looked rosier, and sat her with a warm coat. Although Selphie didn't approve, one of Mr. Devin's many drivers took Selphie on their own to where Mr. Devin would be dining.

The hostess of the very high-class restaurant greeted Selphie at the door. Upon entered Selphie found herself swallowed by the intoxicating smells of good food. Sweet perfumes of high-class ladies sitting at the crystal tables filled Selphie's nostrils. The artificial aroma rising from the hundreds of blue candles that hung on the walls, lighted the tables, and swiveled in chandeliers brought dizziness to her.

With a sickening sweet, smile the hostess brought Selphie to a corner of the dining hall. Behind blue veil was yet another blue candled crystal table. Sitting across from each other was Mr. Devin and another man. Selphie's smile fell when she saw this other man. His skin was dark, not from pigment coloring, but from dirt. His clothes were moth eaten; his teeth yellowed and cracked. He had thinning hair on his scalped that was rough and wrinkled. By the look of his dark, almost black, eyes he could still be young.

He reeked of a putrid smell Selphie could not describe.

"Selphie dear!" Mr. Devin smiled happily with Selphie's entrance. "Please dear take a seat."

The hostess kindly pulled a chair for Selphie as she cautiously sat in it. "My dear allow me to introduce you to an old school friend of mine this is Jaxon Ogleworth." Jaxon pulled a hand slyly out, took Selphie's pale, scrawny, hand, and brought it close to his lips. Before he could kiss it, Selphie heard him release a sort of grunt as he released her bony hand.

"A pleasure to meet you Ms. Tilmitt. I've been told," Jaxon slowly turned to Mr. Devin smiling evilly, "so much about you."

"Good things I hope!" Selphie smiled bowing her head bashfully. She placed her hands in her lap excitedly thinking of what Mr. Devin might have said.

"Oh nothing but good things darlin'." Jaxon cocked his head showing more of his rotting teeth. "He said you were one of the prettiest girls in Trabia." He returned his view to Devin, "But he didn't mention you were so small."

Mr. Devin only had bitter and angry glares that faced Ogleworth. His muscles showed such a great hate that it made Selphie shiver if her eyes averted to him. "Surely that shouldn't bother you Jaxon old friend." He said gritting his teeth, "After all you won't be near her… _ever_."

Jaxon leaned back into his chair and bowed his head. "You're right Devin good friend. I won't be." He returned his look at Selphie and scanned her from her feet shakily touching the ground to her face that held a bright smile. "Then I have no further issues."

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

When dinner was finished and the bill was paid, a host escorted Jaxon to the door while Mr. Devin walked with Selphie outside. A valet promptly brought Devin's expensive and flashy car. He gently seated Selphie and drove off.

Selphie, who still wasn't accustomed to a luxury like a car, sat in amazement watching the beautiful snow falling across the city. Her eyes never left the window.

Devin drove on without Selphie noticing how long it was taking them to get home. She simply sat content at looking at the beautiful scenery. They arrived to a crowded area full of tourist, and with them beggars. The streets were flooded with massive amounts of people. Selphie couldn't help to take her eyes off of a beautiful fountain that stood in the middle of the square. Carvings of angels dancing about it surrounded the surface of the stone. Sitting and twirling around the fountain were women with makeup pale faces and glittery clothing of cheap quality.

"Selphie," Devin began. Selphie immediately turned her attention to Mr. Devin and smiled widely. "Did you know, those women over there are beggars like you were?"

Confused Selphie looked back at the women. They were thin and sickly but more fuller and healthy looking than what Selphie was and certainly more than the people still on the street. They had shining gowns and make up on their faces. There was no way they lived a life like hers. There just couldn't be a way.

Mr. Devin left the area and kept driving off. They went about towards a more desolate road, coming to the outskirts of the city, then to the countryside. They had been in the car for hours. "You see Selphie… I'm afraid I have bad news." Devin said abruptly as his car came to a very slow speed.

"What is it?" Selphie tilted her head and looked at Devin innocently.

"As much as it pains me to say this, you cannot stay with me any longer."

Selphie stayed quiet and sat back in her seat. With a sigh, she looked to Mr. Devin and smiled widely. "Well that's okay! You've given me the best time of my life! I've never had so much food, or these clothes! Everything you gave me. I could never ask for more. You don't have to be sorry!"

Devin chuckled and turned his car to a stop. There were no other cars in the desolate area they had arrived in. "Selphie I can't imagine you on the streets though, starving, sooner or later dying, like a common rat in a sewer. No Selphie… no you're much more than a rat." He turned to her and grinned kindly. "Do you remember the ladies at the fountain I showed you?"

Selphie nodded.

"Those women, they aren't like the other beggars as you can see. They are much more privileged. Jaxon Ogleworth you see, puts them there."

"Who is Mr. Ogleworth?" Selphie asked abruptly.

"He's a school friend of mine. However, when we graduated I was far more successful than he. His education didn't get him very far. Although since we were such close friends I've been aiding him along the way so he doesn't starve. In return, he's offered to let you be one of those women at the fountain."

It was as though someone told Selphie she could be a celebrity. "Really?" Her hands clasped her chest as it raised with pride. Excitement filled her and she blossomed.

"Yes my dear, and I'll help you find a small affordable home, I'd hate you live with those women. I'll even come see you there."

"It's like a dream come true!" Selphie squeaked and looked forward out the windshield. She blinked a few times and turned to Devin. "What do those women do exactly to be different from the others?"

Mr. Devin's lips moved but words failed to come from his mouth. He cleared his throat and retried, "Well my dear. They do a sort of service for men."

"Service?" Selphie asked her eyes wide in wonder.

"Well I can't exactly explain it…" Mr. Devin put a hand on Selphie's shoulder, "Would you mind if I just showed you?"

Selphie didn't ever reply per say, but her heart fully trusted Mr. Devin. Had he told her to drink poison, kill someone, or rob a bank Selphie would have done it. When Devin grasped her and dragged her into the backseat of his car, Selphie was uncomfortable, but did not question him.

Mr. Devin pressed her against the seat and held her hands together over her head. One hand kept them there while the other spread about her body pressing down against hard. It eventually reached the end of her dress, and with it he rode his bare hand against her roughened skin. Devin pressed his lips against her lips, her neck, and her chest. Selphie gasped and squirmed when she could as she felt her body shake mercilessly under Devin.

Devin released her grip from Selphie's hands and both of them groped her, pressing her into the seat. Selphie turned her head to the side and shut her eyes as she squeaked in pain. She heard the sound of leather hitting the metal buckle of Devin's pants.

She squeezed her eyes closed and felt her hands shake still stationary in the place Devin had left them. Tears escaped her eyes as she prayed the moment to end.

-------------

_A timid person is frightened before a danger, a coward during the time, and a courageous person afterward._

_--__Jean Paul Richter_

-------------


	5. Chapter 4

"_Beautiful world!"_

_Beautiful World  
Chapter Four_

Devin drove up into the driveway of his home several hours after midnight. Servants were still however loyally awaiting his return. Mr. Devin promptly halted the car in front of his estate. Gave his keys to the gatekeeper and proudly rose from his seat.

Selphie was in the back seat completely motionless. Her body ached in such a pain she could only lay there. She remained on her side with her cheek against the upholstery of the car seat, now wet from escaped tears. Her legs sat flatly on top of the other. Her entire body wanted to shake. Selphie wouldn't get up, she couldn't sit up. A manservant eventually came to pick her up and placed her on her bed.

A maid came to help Selphie to dress for sleep. Selphie refused and hid under the covers clutching them close to her body. She shivered madly and pulled the sheets even tighter around her. Nothing stopped her shaking. She asked someone to help her start a fire in her hearth. Selphie sat so close to it the maid thought she would fall in.

This too didn't stop the shaking.

Unsure what to do, the maid drew a warm bath. When she asked Selphie to test the water, Selphie repeatedly demanded the water hotter. When the tub was full of water of the hottest temperature provided through plumbing, Selphie still pleaded it to be warmer. As she soaked under the bubbles, her skin flushed red from the heat. Whenever she raised a hand to look at it, it still shook furiously.

Near dawn, Selphie finally came out of her bath, dressed, brought a blanket to wrap about her and fell asleep by her fireplace. Or rather, she attempted too. She spent the entire night clutching, shaking, and convincing her Mr. Devin… only Mr. Devin had a right to do what he did. Whatever he said was her law.

''''''''''''

Mr. Devin did visit only an hour after Selphie fell asleep. He didn't want to wake her but she happened to be in such a soft, light slumber her eyes came open on their own.

"Selphie my dear?" Mr. Devin smiled and knelt on the floor where Selphie lay cocooned in her blanket. "Dear are you alright?"

Selphie had a blank gaze; she started at Devin's kind and wise eyes and nodded. She forced a cute happy smile and closed her eyes.

"I'm okay." She said in a peeping voice. Mr. Devin was content with her answer and left.

Selphie didn't want to rise from her place. The order for all the maids that entered Selphie's room stated that she not be disturbed under any circumstance. Without concern, Selphie did not eat breakfast, lunch or dinner.

The maids had one suitcase and packed it well with as many clothing articles items.

It was midnight of that night before Selphie scooted out of her blanket and observed the packed suitcase on her bed. She recalled Mr. Devin telling her she couldn't be here anymore. She raced to her vanity and for the last time her fingers gently stroked the silver instruments that stood proudly on the glass. Her fingers stopped at the small jewelry box. She lifted the top off and pulled out a chain. It was a simple silver chain with a small triangular shaped pendent.

Without thinking Selphie laced it around her neck to keep one memento that she had the choice of keeping to herself.

'''''''''''''''

Five years later 

Blowing into her fingers, Selphie rubbed them together smiling at the effect of warmth. She rested against the stone fountain in the center of the square. It was a little irritating to be there, Selphie thought. You had enough noise from the blaring cars in the traffic, the shouting from the tourists and civilians trying hard to pass through the crowded sidewalks, but of all things Selphie tired of the nagging and complaining the other women had.

"You stole that customer from you, slut!"

"He came running to my open arms, I guess he likes pretty things."

"I'll kill you!"

"Bitch!"

"Whore!"

It was daily, hourly almost. Anytime a man requested the company of a lady from the fountain the women would fight and claw to be the one the man would choose. Selphie wasn't particularly outgoing in this kind of manner. She preferred to sit back and watch the women sabotage one another while she remained at total peace. Selphie, as they thought, could not be of any threat to them.

They were beautiful, successful, seducing, charming ladies. Selphie was a meek, badly dressed, quiet freak that sat in the back with a smile waiting for their leftovers. Selphie received a customer when the other women could not be there to take another customer.

To Selphie's misfortune that happened far more often than she hoped.

Her main customer was none other than Mr. Devin. If the night was too cold, or Selphie hadn't made enough for a proper dinner Mr. Devin, who visited the fountain often, would take her to his mansion and let her dine, and rest. Of course, this was all with **his **company.

Mr. Devin didn't actually pay her directly, instead he'd take her for a meal or the doctor's. The doctor Selphie saw was actually a kind man that Selphie came to trust. She did find it awkward that Mr. Devin and her could only come after the office closed and all workers had left, even the janitors.

Selphie was simple minded and innocent, but being around the ladies at the fountain did force her to learn the normal concerns that a lady of her status ought to worry about. These issues included prices, diseases, and of course, what the women considered the worst of all pregnancy.

The one person Selphie would ever mention these topics to, was Mr. Devin. He too worried about these. Mr. Devin ordered Selphie to visit the doctor very often, and once she received a surgery. Mr. Devin never told her the exact term or procedure, but Selphie was in pain for weeks. The estate housed her during recovery and the only note on the event Selphie heard, was "You won't have to worry about pregnancy."

Confused and unaware of the life that went around her, Selphie had no choice but to swallow it and smile. As the snow fell on her head, all she did was think of its beauty. With every snowflake, she counted her blessings.

Selphie smiled as she opened her mouth letting a snowflake fall into her mouth. Her lips closed with a grin. She returned her view forward where she noticed the women fighting again over the next customer. Bored Selphie faced the ground at her feet counting the snowflakes as the hit her shoe.

_One for Mr. Devin…_

"Oh you'll be so pleased with me, I'll give you a night you'll never forget!"

_One for my job…_

"Come with me! I'll make you the happiest man in Trabia, no man has come back unhappy from me!"

_One for my home…_

"Going with them is such a waste, I'll be the woman of your dreams, and for half the price they ask of you."

_One for—_

"…but the lady I choose tonight is you!" A cheerful male's voice called out. Selphie raised her head and saw a hand held out towards her. She peered up even further and met eyes with someone with dim sapphires as irises. He had long chestnut hair topped with a cowboy hat. He had such a happy, yet sly smile Selphie could only blush.

"Would you join me?" He asked bowing his head politely.

-------------------------------------

_Every human being on this earth is born with a tragedy, and it isn't original sin. He's born with the tragedy that he has to grow up. That he has to leave the nest, the security, and go out to do battle. He has to lose everything that is lovely and fight for a new loveliness of his own making, and it's a tragedy. A lot of people don't have the courage to do it._

_--__Helen Hayes_

_------------------------------------_


	6. Chapter 5

_"Mayowaz kimi dake wo mistsumeteiru"  
("I have no doubt I only look at you")_

_Beautiful World  
Chapter Five_

Like majority of the youth in the world, Irvine Kinneas had lost his family to the war. However, to his fortune, Galbadia Garden graciously took him in.

Most boys of Irvine's age took interest in the Sorceress movies. They admired the strong knights and their courageous acts. Irvine didn't ever give attention to this fad. He leaned towards old country Winhill movies with cowboys and sharpshooters.

Sharpshooters were always calm by nature; they fought and could leave the battle scene with a smile. Knights often found themselves injured. In addition, knights may never come alive from a battle, sharpshooters always did. A sorceress's knight only received fame if the movie made the sorceress a good and successful one. Their fate completely resided in the person they protected.

Sharpshooters won by their own merit. Their fame and fortune was infinite.

As the little boys tried to take up gunblades like the sorceress's knights, Irvine played with toy handguns already trying to perfect his aim. While those boys unable to wield gunblades moved on to simpler swords, or the opposite, Irvine found himself trying to find a good stance at how to hold a rifle. When the boys who couldn't hold a sword to save their life came to using fist weapons and or guns, Irvine was already the pro.

Of his age group, and soon from the entire Garden Irvine was on top for sharp shooting. The fame that his movies promised was finally given to him. Most boys had chosen guns as a last resort, an obligation.

Irvine chose it for passion.

Being the best with a weapon wasn't quite enough in Garden. Irvine also must attain good grades academically. This was his weakness. Looking at a dreary book or study panel all day sent him to sleep.

This was how he met his best friend, Rinoa Caraway. Her father enrolled her at a young age. She had wit, cleverness, and book smarts. However, she also had parental rebellion. Irvine caught her purposely failing any sort of project that would be sent to her parents. Rinoa never spoke about her odd obsession of sending bad reports to her parents, mainly her father she stated, nor did he care. Rinoa who shared Irvine's study panel became his best study partner, tutor, and friend.

When Irvine was about 12 years old, he came to notice yet another keen difference between his heroes compared to all the others boys. Knights were bound to the one sorceress they protected. If she died then they were sentenced to solitude to amend for their sin of failure. Sharpshooters, of course contrary to this, received many women. Flocks of them would parade around the man with a gun laughing and smiling.

This started Irvine's most infamous repute.

From his young age he started being noticed walking around Garden hand in hand with some young girl on his age. They would kiss him on the cheek, hug him, and or accompany him. Amongst these girls was Irvine's first girlfriend, who happened to be Rinoa. It made sense with the two being such close friends for so many years. However, young preteen drama came in the way and the two broke shortly after Rinoa received her first kiss from Irvine.

Three years later Rinoa demanded that her father send her to Balamb Garden to join their SeeD program. She admitted to Irvine that she only really wanted to go to avoid more visits back home. When her father reluctantly agreed to his daughter's demands, she noticed that Irvine could not come with her. She then asked her father to pay for Irvine's transfer and schooling in Balamb as well.

Fury Caraway was the general of the Galbadian army. He had a romantic marriage with a beautiful singer named Julia Heartily, and between these two, money was never an issue. Irvine had met and become apart of the Caraway family. For those reasons Irvine too was supported and transferred to Balamb.

Irvine was 16 when he took an even greater interest with women. He had girlfriends, short-lived relationships, but also spent the nights with them. As time went by these relationships grew shorter and shorter. Eventually, Irvine's companionships had become nothing but constant one-night stands. His charm and high skill got him any girl he desired. His kindness and flirtatiousness got him in bed with that girl as well.

Although most girls knew the rumors of Irvine's sweet words being nothing but a farce, they still fell for it.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine Kinneas now 17 and on his way to make SeeD had reached a high rank in his class, his skill plus Rinoa's academic assistance. The SeeD exam was drawing close and Trabia Garden was hosting a convention for current and future SeeDs. Irvine, Rinoa, and Rinoa's boyfriend Seifer thought it would be a fun idea to go to this convention. Their real plan was to skip it without the consequence of missing classes.

The idea blew up in their faces when they discovered Trabia was a pretty tourist location, but not any fun for teens such as themselves.

Rinoa, who had spent much time on the ice rink in Galbadia Garden, seized the chance to ice skate at a frozen lake she found.

As she twirled through the air, Seifer and Irvine stood at the sidelines in boredom watching. Graceful as an angel Rinoa landed on the ice perfectly and did a spin finishing with her toe-peck firmly on the ice.

Seifer clapped, not amused, while he yawned. "Are you done yet Rinoa?" He asked between yawns.

Rinoa turned back, her eyes thinned with irritation. "What is with you guys! This is no fair, it's either we walk around bored around the streets, or I have fun while you two complain." Her ebony hair blue in the cold wind pushing her copper colored bangs from her eyes.

With a grin Irvine shrugged, "Well that's okay Rin, you stay here. You and Seifer both. I can go though, right?" He smiled innocently.

"Oh be quiet Irvine, there's no girls for you to pick up anyways." Rinoa snapped as she skated towards them. She pulled off her skates and slid on her snow boots. "What's your hurry anyways?"

"No girls? Rinoa you completely block out so much." Seifer said in mocking tone. "Kinneas, you want girls I'll show you something you'll get a kick out of." He put an arm around Rinoa and led her away from the lake expecting Irvine to follow.

'''''''''''''''''

The streets in Town Square were always busy as the three discovered. For that reason they kept their distance only watching the bustling from afar. Seifer looked ahead his green eyes thin with mischief. "See there, Kinneas?" He pointed to the square. Irvine came to Seifer's side and looked ahead.

"Not really." He turned to Seifer and gave him a hopeless glance. "I see beggars."

The dirty smirk across Seifer's face grew, "There you go Kinneas. A feast made for a king."

"The heck, I'm not going to ask a beggar out when a princess will beg me to be with her." Irvine held his black cowboy hat closer to his head to avoid the wind pushing it off. "Nice try though."

Rinoa stood behind the two with her arms crossed incredibly aggravated. The wind howled making her shake a bit more. "Okay enough guys, let's just go back to the Garden and listen to the last lecture of the day."

Irvine nodded and walked over to Rinoa. Seifer, however, didn't like the taste of defeat. "Wait a second Kinneas, come back here." Irvine came up a step, but not completely. Seifer pointed again to the center of the square this time. "Those girls don't look like beggars to you do they?"

It took a minute for the image to register in Irvine's head. He gave them a solid stare, then suddenly his eyes widened as he looked back at Seifer with a disgusted look. "Psh you're kidding me. You and I both know what kind of girls those are. I'm not paying to sleep with anyone."

"Don't kid yourself Kinneas, you do it all the time. Buying dinner or just paying up front. Either way you get into their pants with money." Seifer said slyly with a rude chuckle in his voice.

Irvine jerked his head back and replied, "First off, that ain't the same. Second off, I don't even have to pay for dinner sometimes." Upon hearing this, Rinoa just groaned in disgust.

"I cannot believe you two!" She stamped up to them and placed a hand on both of their shoulders. "Seifer for saying it, and you Irvine for responding. You guys make me sick. A prostitute, really? That's just gross!" Rinoa bit her lip and knelt to the ground. "Really gross. What kind of life is that? How can they have relationships? Intimacy is a business for them! Do they ever just enjoy themselves?"

"Who says they don't enjoy their work?" Seifer chuckled evilly. To this, Rinoa just darted an angry glare and groaned. She stood again and let the wind blow her hair, in attempt to blow it over her shoulder.

"That's not what I meant—" She started. She rubbed her arms and sighed. "I meant, do they ever have a night where no one is paying them?"

Irvine leaned back and let his eyes dance at his view. A wry smile touched his lips, "I bet I could get one of them to be with me without a fee." He licked his lips slyly.

"Even you're not that good Irvine. Girls like them don't waste their time on non paying customers." Rinoa scoffed as she leaned towards Seifer allowing him to wrap an arm around her. "I'd love to see you try."

Seifer rubbed his arm against Rinoa's side to warm her up and squinted his eyes, "So would I. Want to make a bet Kinneas?"

"About me and one of those girls? Throw your best wager." Irvine punched the palm of his hand and faced Rinoa and Seifer with a cunning smile. "I could show any of them girls a good time!"

"Alright then, Kinneas. If you feel so lucky," Seifer released his hold on Rinoa and took a step towards Irvine. "500 gil says you can't spend the entire night with one of those girls without having to pay for it."

Irvine leaned in and smiled mischievously, "Throw in the money for dinner and consider it a bet."

"You two cannot be serious!" Rinoa screamed angrily. She bent her knees and bent in her arms, "This is not a game!"

Seifer and Irvine shook their hands and nodded in agreement.

''''''''''''''''''''

A few minutes later Seifer and Rinoa made way for the hotel while Irvine headed to the center of Town Square. The smirk across his face grew only wider with every step.

By nature, Irvine had both a very handsome face, and a very pretty one. His skin was creamy white, smooth, and flawless. His eyes were the color of the ocean on a perfect sailing day, and when winked them girls would get weak in their knees. His lips were thin but long giving him an attractive smile.

Just for laughs, Irvine would even wink at men to see their reactions. Oddly enough, he'd get some positive feedbacks.

The idea of a challenge on something Irvine considered himself a master in intrigued him so. He looked ahead watching the women dance flirtatiously around their fountain.

"Hello ladies," He said frankly bowing his head politely. The women immediately turned to him with interest. "I was hoping one of you fine girls would want to join me for a night on the town." He winked, "Anyone interested?"

Although used to female attention, even Irvine was overwhelmed with the ladies' reaction. Three of them jumped to him and embraced him closely. They whispered offers in his ears and fiddled with his jacket.

The women who weren't directly on him decided to make more of a fuss. A pale brunette looked at him first irritated and then suddenly seductively.

"Oh you'll be so pleased with me, I'll give you a night you'll never forget!" She batted her eyelashes. Irvine raised eyebrows annoyed with her fakeness.

A blonde shoved her out of the way and puckered her lips. "Come with me, I'll make you the happiest man in Trabia, no man has _ever _back unhappy from me!" To be nice Irvine smiled politely and waited for someone else to speak.

Fortunately that didn't take long, a fraction of a second later a girl with ebony hair and brown eyes leapt before him. She was bony and looked somewhat older, or more sickly, than the rest of the group. "Going with them is such a waste, I'll be the woman of your dreams, and for half the price they ask of you." Her eyes pointed to the women still hugging him.

Irvine gently pushed the ladies off of him and chuckled embarrassedly. "Oh ladies I'd love to be with all of you. You're all making this such a difficult decision! But, I don't need this. I just want a simple night pretty girls. Don't you all worry I'll come back for all of you. To sum it up though I just need one girl for now." He smiled apologetically and hurriedly let his eyes find someone to choose.

All the women now had the their arms crossed to see which one of their offers had sunk in to his attention. Irvine looked frantically, while remaining a cool composure, for someone. He noticed someone sitting in the back. Cautiously he pushed aside a few women and noticed a girl sitting along the fountain with her head down. She had damp brown hair that protruding outward in the most odd way. Irvine couldn't see her face but her hair was so funny looking he could only let curiosity take over.

"I beg all of your pardon gals, but the lady I choose tonight is you!" He stuck a hand out to the benched girl and awaited her glance to meet his.

She slowly raised her head, first looking at his hand. Her head moved up further until her eyes met his. Wide in shock, her eyes were the brightest green Irvine had ever seen. Her lips were parted as though she was confused. Irvine noticed her white cheeks blooming with a slight pink. He kept his hand out and smiled a bit more confidently. "Would you join me?" He asked bowing his head politely.

-------------------------

_A man can sleep around, no questions asked, but if a woman makes nineteen or twenty mistakes she's a tramp._

_--__Joan Rivers_

_-------------------------_


	7. Chapter 6

"_Beautiful Boy!"_

_Beautiful World  
__Chapter Six_

Selphie was in utter shock. She blinked several times to assure that the gentleman's hand was truly in front of her. Hesitantly her hand moved forward and met his palm.

It was so warm.

The man clasped his strong fingers over her and gently pulled her off the fountain. She weakly fell on him; he however seemed to expect it and wrapped one arm around her as though he was protecting her, or himself. He took off his hat apologetically several times as he faced the other women and scooted out of the crowd. Selphie bit her lip and looked up at the tall man's face.

He was young, and very handsome. His face was creamy and full, you could tell immediately he didn't grow up here in Trabia. Although desperate women were trampling him, he kept a smile, a wide flirtatious smile.

After they escaped the crowds of the Town Square, near the entrance of a shop he let go of her and knelt down to catch his breath. "Heh, thought we wouldn't make it outta there." He laughed facing the ground.

Selphie titled her head, "Are you okay?" She asked a bit concerned. The man raised his head and nodded. He stood straight again, letting his height tower little frail Selphie. "I don't think you're okay." Selphie continued although the man had regained his composure.

"What do you mean?" His head jerked back and he shrugged confused.

"I still really don't get why I'm here?"

"You were at the fountain with those other ladies right?"

"Y-yeah, but I mean—"

"Then that's all there is to it! So you got a name?"

Still lost in thought, Selphie snapped up and looked at the man. She nodded happily and smiled. "My name's Selphie."

The man's eyes softened, as though he had just noticed something. A smile came upon his lips as he opened them to speak. "Nice to meet you Selphie, I'm Irvine." He slipped his black hat off and bowed gracefully. "And I'll be happy to be your escort tonight?"

"Escort?" Selphie asked unsure of what that was exactly.

"That's right. I was hoping you'd join me for dinner." He took a step closer and brushed some snow off her shoulder. "You like— to like eat right?" He asked hesitantly.

"R-right, right! Of course!" Selphie laughed, "Who doesn't like to eat?" Although she laughed, confusion still lingered in her mind. What exactly did Irvine want?

Irvine put an arm around her and led her through the crowd again, "Then there shouldn't be a problem Miss Selphie. I am going to show you what it's like to be with a real man."

'''''''''''''''''

It wasn't the most expensive restaurant in the world. In fact, Mr. Devin on few occasions had taken her to places far more high classed. However, lately Selphie hadn't been receiving any clients. No clients, no dinner. Even Mr. Devin hadn't been around for some time.

Selphie felt her stomach growl painfully as she clutched it, trying to be inconspicuous about it. She still felt uneasy about the stranger accompanying her. She never felt safe with clients.

"Order whatever you like! As much as you like!" Irvine said happily flipping through the menu. Selphie didn't say anything, or look at the menu. She kept her eyes intent on Irvine. Every once and while he'd look up from his menu and notice her staring deep into him. "Is something wrong?"

"I still don't get it." Selphie said bluntly.

To this, Irvine was taken aback. He smiled and leaned inward cunningly, "I don't think I get you." He said with a twinkle in his eye. Selphie couldn't understand if he was joking, flirting, or confused and being nice about it.

"I mean, all those other girls. They're prettier, more experienced … why did you choose me? No one ever does."

_Wasn't expecting this_, Irvine raised an eyebrow and then smiled again. "Well who says they're prettier? I think you were prettiest one there. As for experience I got no basis of comparison, also I wasn't looking for that either."

"You weren't?" Selphie asked curiously.

"Nah, I just wanted to go have dinner. Honestly." He grinned in a fake angelic way, causing Selphie to laugh. "See? It's not too terrible to be with me. You can relax now."

'''''''''''''''''

After dinner, Irvine and Selphie left the restaurant to the streets that had dramatically grown quieter. The fountain still had a few lonely women standing around the sculpted angels waiting for men to want them.

Only a few people made way through the square, few cars drove through the snow, and little voices were heard.

Irvine placed an arm around Selphie guiding them along. Selphie didn't fight Irvine, mainly for the reason that he would win if he chose to be persistent. Another thing was his warmth. He too was out in the cold with her, but he felt so good to be close to.

"So, why are you so shocked I chose you?" Irvine asked as he stared off into the night sky.

Selphie, entrapped by the warmth, woke up and turned to Irvine's tall head. "Me? Well I usually don't get picked. That's all."

"Is it cause you sit in the back of all those ladies?"

"Maybe… I do that on purpose!" Selphie exclaimed in justifying way.

"Why? You're really pretty, if a guy passed ya he'd pay anything to be with ya."

In the dim moonlight, Selphie blushed a bit; her head involuntarily leaned against Irvine's side. Her lips showed a glowing smile. "Honestly?" She returned her view to Irvine. The cowboy had responded and was staring down at her as well. "Then, I don't wanna be picked I guess."

"Oh…" Irvine suddenly moved at a dramatically slower pace. With Selphie still under his arm, he felt a sickly feeling of guilt. His main intention for the night was to be with this girl, to prove that he could show anyone a good time. All of the sudden, he felt a pit in his stomach.

"But I need the money, so I just wait till all the other women are taken. Then I don't have to fight with anyone."

Irvine nodded pretending to be supportive, "Oh cool. That's a good way to go about it." Selphie stared at her feet, not at all in hurry to pull herself from Irvine. Instead of pushing her, he tightened his grip on her. "So where do you live?" He asked trying to change the subject.

"Not far," Selphie pointed down a lane, "Just down that street actually." Slowly and steadily, the two walked through the street. Selphie stopped them in front of what looked like a boarded up fence. She gently pushed and it became a door.

Irvine entered with hesitance. The room inside was a simple place with nothing but cobblestone floors and a small hearth at the end of the room. The entire room was frozen. Icicles hung over the door ominously while some stones that must have been wet, glazed over with ice.

Selphie skipped from Irvine's grasp and merrily came to the hearth. "Home sweet home!"

As far as Irvine could see, there weren't very many things that could distinguish a person's living there. Everything that was in there was set up right by the fireplace. A large pot with a plate, a small suitcase of clothes folded neatly, a beaten mat with a sheet laying over it, and small pile of wood. Selphie knelt by the wood, picked up a log with great effort, and dropped it into her hearth. She dug into the box of clothes and pulled out a small book of matches. Carefully, although with difficulty since her fingers shook from the cold, she struck the match against the floor and thrust it against the wood.

Irvine came to her and sat by the forming fire. Although small, it provided a glow about the room. He could make out Selphie's small fragile face. In golden light, she looked angelic smiling so happily. She turned to him with her odd hair creating shadows on Irvine. She scooted to him and continued to grin.

"You know," She started to giggle, "I had a lot of fun tonight! I haven't so much fun in a while." She was rather near to Irvine now.

_This is it, kiss her now and she's yours. No one ever resists a Kinneas Kiss. _Irvine leaned in and put a hand on Selphie's shoulder to pull her near. Immediately, to Irvine's bad luck, she hopped up and grabbed the pot on the ground.

"Sorry! Just I need to get some snow. If I don't start melting some now I don't get nearly enough I need to wash up." She picked it up, straining her small body to pull it off the floor. She slowly walked to her door, "Wait here I'll be right back!"

Groaning softly, Irvine tilted his head back and sighed. "Damnit." He blew out some air and sighed. What was wrong with him? Was he losing his touch? Never! There wasn't a woman alive who Irvine hadn't been able to ease into listening to his every desire. This one was no different.

Selphie didn't take terribly long. Her pot was full of snow and she struggled inside dragging the pot along making a loud clanging noise as she did. "Sorry about that!" She laughed embarrassedly.

Irvine stood and picked up her pot with ease and looked at her as if to say, "where to?" Selphie clapped cheerfully and walked over to her fireplace. Irvine set the pot on the ground beside her feet and turned to her.

She tilted her head cutely and looked Irvine in the eye. "Thanks! Tee-hee that's always such a hard thing for me to do."

There were no more hesitance Irvine grasped a shoulder. His firm arm was enough to keep her against the wall. Selphie didn't say anything, she simply kept her vision on him, intent, and also confused. Her mouth opened to ask something but nothing escaped.

_One kiss and she's yours! _

Irvine brought his face close to hers. He could feel her breath on his cheek. Still she said nothing. Irvine moved his other hand on her unguarded shoulder. As he came forth to actually kiss her, the repeated thought flashed through his mind.

"_Then, I don't wanna be picked I guess."  
__"I had a lot of fun tonight! I haven't so much fun in a while."_

Would he really be showing her a good time in this way? Seducing her into something, she does on a daily basis unhappily?

_I'll show her how it's done to enjoy it._ His lips were touching hers now. Selphie's heart was racing, but her lips stayed silent.

_"I had a lot of fun tonight! I haven't so much fun in a while."_

Irvine pulled his head away and chuckled. For tonight, he couldn't be with this girl. She was tainted now. All he could imagine was how happy she was for his company. Someone she spoke too not slept with. That was most likely more than she had in quite some time.

He wouldn't be with her tonight, not this way.

"Sorry, I just wanted to see how all your clients felt. Pretty lucky fellas I would say." He winked and removed his hands from her shoulders. Tossing his head softly, he looked at Selphie who still looked rather confused. "Say Selphie, how much do guys spend to be with ya?"

Tonight he wouldn't show her how fun it was to be with a man, but rather without one for a night.

"Uh— not a big amount usually." She fiddled with her fingers and stared at them. "Only a 100 to 200 gil. Unless there's no one else there at _all_," She looked up mischievously, "Then I charge high! Like 500!" A giggle escaped her lips, "But I know no guy really wants to be with _me_ for 500."

"I do."

Selphie's eyes widened. Before she said anything else, Irvine cupped her hand above her head with something clasped between them. He removed his hand gently and brought Selphie's hand with it. He bowed his head and kissed the back of her palm with a shine in his eye.

"Would ya mind if I came to see ya again tomorrow?" He asked. Selphie simply nodded as he swiftly exited out to the cold.

After he was gone she looked in her hands to see 500 gil squashed in her palm.

----------------------

_The meeting of two personalities is like the contact of two chemical substances: if there is any reaction, both are transformed._

_--__Carl Jung_

_----------------------_


	8. Chapter 7

"_Jibun no utsukushisa mada shiranai no"  
__("Do you still not realize your own beauty?")_

_Beautiful World  
__Chapter Seven_

Irvine dragged himself through the snow. He watched his long imprints in the white flurry as he went. He pushed open the hotel doors and threw himself in. The warmth of the room was cozy as he rubbed his arms.

"You're back early, Kinnneas." Seifer, who sat comfortably in the front lobby, called. Planted on the seat next to him sat Rinoa with a disappointed expression on her face. "Couldn't do it under pressure?" He asked with a snicker.

Irvine jerked his head and back and pointed his fingers like a gun. "Puh-leese," He flicked his hand up as though he shot something, "I invented pressure." He coolly came before Rinoa and Seifer and sat himself down gently. "She was real sad to see me leave."

Rinoa, incredibly irritated overall, groaned, "Then why are you back here! Go back with your harlot."

"Just chill Rin." Seifer patted her thigh and turned his attention back to Irvine. "It's 10 o'clock Kinneas. Any earlier and you would've been listening to a lecture with Rin and me. I am not going to sit around and listen to you tell me you won the wager when you're back here already."

"Good lecture by the way, 'Fight fire with fire: master Elem Atk-J.'" Rinoa yawned as she leaned back in her chair.

Biting in the inside of his cheek, Irvine sighed. There wasn't really a way to lie his way out of this. "FINE, but can you at least pay me back for dinner. I really am out."

Seifer sat up and chuckled. "Fat chance Kinneas! You owe me 500! Why would I bother paying a cent on you?" He held his head erect and laughed evilly. As he walked away to the corridors of the rooms, he muttered, "Sucker."

"Rinoa," Irvine whispered, "I hate your boyfriend."

With Seifer gone it was Rinoa and Irvine alone in the hotel lobby. Majority of the workers had dimmed the lights and left. Only one person sat at the desk, and the rest of the first floor went deathly quiet.

"So you ended up paying?" Rinoa said somewhat curious.

Irvine looked up and smiled, "Nah. I just didn't do anything. She didn't seem like someone I should sleep with."

"Don't they do that for a living?"

"Yeah, but this girl was different. I mean from the minute I saw her she was acting a lot more different from those other women too. I felt wrong doing anything with her."

Rinoa raised an eyebrow clearly unimpressed; "You're kidding me, right? 75 of the girls you're with aren't… ready to be with you and you still ease them into it! Good hyne Irvine. You just didn't have the cash to do anything."

"Yeah, Rin, that's it. Anyways how about lending me 500 to pay Seifer?" Irvine stretched his arms widely and yawned. Rinoa shrugged and nodded.

"I haven't gotten anything from that man yet, I'll get you some as soon as I do." She swung herself on the chair and jumped onto her feet. Lazily she walked down the hall, she stopped herself shortly before she fell out of view from Irvine. "You know, if you disappear right now I'll tell Seifer you're still going to make the bet."

The only thing that passed through Irvine's mind was the frigid coldness that lurked outdoors. Right now, all he could do was try to warm up his numb limbs. "How about tomorrow? Like when the sun is up?"

Rinoa laughed heartily and vanished into the passages.

''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine knew the lectures of Trabia Garden started early. Rinoa and Seifer did as well. However, the difference between them was the fact that Rinoa and Seifer had no true goal to fulfill by skipping the lectures, save for freezing. Irvine, of course, did.

He marched out as soon as the sun raised, his timing perfect to narrowly escape the Garden faculty who arrived at the hotel early to assure Galbadian and Balamb students weren't doing the exact thing Irvine was. Although it was early morning, the streets already had several people gliding about in attempts to avoid the rush of masses that occurred later in the day.

The main thing Irvine paid attention too was the fountain in the center of Town Square. As he expected there were women there, however Selphie was not apart of them. He decided to view his options:

Go to the women and ask them if Selphie was there, at the risk they ambush him for business

Wait for Selphie himself to see if she comes, with that being he may be staying stationary for quite some time and Selphie may not even show

Go to Selphie's house and see her there, with the off chance she's with a client so waiting would have been appropriate

Irvine groaned with aggravation. The best idea that he thought of must've been to just simply go to Selphie's house and see if she had left yet. If he failed to find her, Rinoa did mention there was a lecture about ammunition usage.

As the early morning winds blew fighting Irvine to surpass his coat, he rushed through hoping running would warm him up. His fingers felt as though they would fall off, when he pressed them against his palm they felt like cold logs and no longer an animate part of him. A burning pain bit at his ear. He looked up to relief to see he was at Selphie's door.

Today, he promised, he would finish something he left undone yesterday. He confidently stepped at her door and gently knocked. More like patted, he couldn't get his fingers to bend. A moment later, Selphie cutely appeared at the door with a glorious smile.

"Hi Irvine! Wow you're here early!"

"You knew I was coming?" Irvine asked blankly. Selphie tilted her head innocently.

"You said you were coming…" Selphie bit her lip and gave Irvine an odd glance. To this, Irvine chuckled. He nodded his head and without a concern trotted into the house.

"Course', just teasing ya." He winked. Selphie still lingered at the doorway as Irvine moved about the shack. "So what're you up to?"

Selphie twiddled her fingers against the door, "Just going to leave actually…" she echoed as a foot stepped outside the door. Irvine turned to her and rushed to her side.

"Really? Well you know I was thinking we should go someplace." Irvine said as he put an arm around her.

"Like where?"

"Don't worry about _that_! Just trust this fella." He led Selphie out to the street. She clung to him as the first gust of wind blew in her face. With a smile, Irvine continued along. He wasn't exactly sure on the destination, just to get as far from that fountain as he could get. Perhaps the hotel? It was too early, the Trabia Garden faculty stationed there could easily catch them while waiting for students to wake and go to the convention.

The first thing that caught Irvine's eye was a convenient store at the corner. Simply to escape the cold Irvine ushered Selphie and himself inside.

The heat wasn't on very high inside, however it happened to be so much warmer inside than outside that no one noticed that fact. Irvine and Selphie stretched in the warmth.

"Hey, hey! No loitering around here, you here to buy something then buy something. If not, get out!" A salesperson behind the desk said grumpily.

Irvine shrugged as he went through the aisles of food. Nothing looked particularly appetizing. Everything seemed dusty and stale. Selphie looked with wonder at all the food. Her stomach released a low growl as her eyes darted from every corner.

"Hey," He said quietly to her, "If ya want something, I'll get it for you."

Selphie turned her head to him in shock. She smiled and ducked her head away. "Really?"

Irvine shrugged, "Sure why not?"

Selphie must've misunderstood Irvine's kind gesture. She came to the counter with an armful of items in her hand. Feeling too guilty to reword his earlier comment Irvine just went along with it. He bought two large cups of hot cocoa along with Selphie's load of stale food items.

The beauty of Trabia's terrible economy was the fact everything was in comparison cheap to any foreigner. However, Irvine was still someone without a proper income.

"126 gil." The cashier said as he bagged the items into large paper bags. Irvine gagged as he peaked into his wallet. He luckily had enough, but with hesitance, he surrendered his final 150 gil.

With a happy tune, Selphie marched off to a nearby rusted bench and sat her bag of goodies down. She comfortably placed herself by it and gently picked the first item up. It was package of vanilla cookies. Initially, the cookies were a pearl color that made a satisfying crunch when you bit into them. However, these were a pale yellow that were chewy as though unbaked, or just stale.

Selphie expressed sounds of happiness as she chewed slowly. Irvine propped himself closer to her. He examined exactly how her jaw moved slowly, devouring and savoring every crumb. Which also, she didn't let a crumb drop which became a mystery to Irvine. "What, do you not like, eat cookies?"

With her eyes, still closed Selphie shook her head. She carefully took another bite and enjoyed the taste on her tongue. After she swallowed her mouthful, she looked up at Irvine who still stood with two paper cups with an odd look. "Well I feel bad asking people for sweets. And no one really offers them for me to say yes for." She took another bite, "Not even Mr. Devin offers me sweets. He probably doesn't eat them much himself. That's why I bet, yeah."

Irvine sat down beside her and sat back on the cold metal bench. "Mr. Devin?" He asked while he carefully viewed Selphie eating.

Nodding with a smile and her mouth slightly occupied, she replied. "Yep, Mr. Devin's always been looking out for me. I'd probably be dead if he weren't around. But, he can't do everything for me. That's why he got me that job, sitting at the fountain you know."

"But you hate that job." Irvine retorted.

She paused, the cookie still between her hands. Her lips parted as she stared off in space. A giggle left her, "Oh I know, but it's the only one I can get. I can't complain. Mr. Devin does so much for me." She quickly swallowed the last piece. Any crumbs left on her fingers she licked with joy as she wrapped the package and placed it back in the bag. "He's probably the only person who cares about me."

With her back turned to him, Irvine felt his face drop in expression. He bit his lip and shook his head. "Well, I think— if you hate where you work, you should get a job someplace else. I'll help you!"

Selphie turned around, put her hands on her chest, and jumped an inch from the ground, "Really You'd do that?"

"Sure," Irvine smiled widely. _Oh yeah, you got her in the bag tonight. She'll be so happy with me and I won't have to feel guilty for a second. I totally earned it. _

"But who'll take me? I'm not very good at anything."

"Just follow me and play along no matter what I do."

''''''''''''''''''''''

The sun was high in the sky. Irvine had explained his plan to Selphie perfectly.

The two returned to the convenient store they had visited that morning. Irvine had filled the cup that earlier had hot cocoa in it with melted snow. The two of them waited outside until at least three customers were inside.

"Okay, just like we planned." Irvine whispered as they entered. Behind the counter the cashier, busy taking someone's money, paid no mind to Irvine and Selphie's entrance.

Irvine sneezed a fake but loud sneeze. The cashier still didn't look towards them. Clicking his tongue irritated, Irvine repeated his action. Selphie looked to see if the cashier had taken notice.

"Gee Irvine," She said loudly, "You got a cold or something?"

"No! It's just all the dust in here!" Irvine said with another sneeze giving Selphie a wink in thanks. The customers that the cashier had dealt with left leaving him annoyed with the two and their theatric. He watched them as they paraded about the store.

"Hyne with nothing but snow outside, why is there dirt all over the floor!" Irvine shouted as he stamped the ground with his boot. He carelessly let his cup of snow, fall from his hand. "Wow, that looks cleaner. Whoops." He looked to Selphie who shrieked at the sight of a spider web in the corner.

The storeowner growled bitterly, "Hey no causing any trouble."

"Eek! There're spiders and bugs, here? What if they get in the food!" She squealed covering her eyes.

The cashier stood up sternly, "Hey, hey! I don't what you two kids are playing at but there ain't no bugs in my food! Don't you be sullying my good name!"

"This place is so dingy, I wouldn't be so sure." Irvine said nonchalantly towards the man's fuming anger. "I mean, Selphie here lives in a shack that's ten times cleaner than this dump!" He walked towards the counter and placed his hands on the surface bringing his head tauntingly towards the cashier. "I bet you got rats in the back playing with all your stored food!"

Boiling red from anger the man burst out. "THAT'S IT! YOU KEEP SAYING THOSE THINGS PEOPLE WILL HEAR YA?! I'LL BE RUINED! I'VE GOT MYSELF A GOOD ESTABLISHMENT HERE! I WON'T HAVE YOU TWO TRAMPS RUINING IT FOR ME!"

"Ruining?" Irvine leaned back with a shrug. "You mistake me, my good sir. I'm just a tourist here. You recall me from earlier; I bought an awful lot of food. It was stale and I came to ask you why. I have no intention of ruining you, just curious on why you're store is so poorly taken care of!"

"THAT'S IT! What do you want from me?!" The man sat down and heaved in great breaths.

A sly smile touched Irvine's lips, "A job, naturally."

"For you?"

"Nah, like I said I'm just a tourist. I was hoping you could give it to my friend Selphie."

Angrily the clerk looked over Irvine's broad shoulder and saw Selphie only a few feet behind smiling widely and happily. "What kinda job?" He muttered.

"Well cleaning of course!" Irvine chuckled.

"I don't need any cleaning girl. I can take care of that myself."

The cashier moved from his counter and shoved Irvine aside as he passed him. Irvine tipped his hat over his eyes, "Could've sure fooled me."

Selphie fidgeted in place the cashier approached her. He was a gruff man, thick in stature. His head was balding and his face held nothing more but an angry growl of an expression. One of his very large hands grasped Selphie's shoulder. Irvine jerked in response, however the cashier just looked at her carefully as though inspecting her. "Well I guess it would do the store some good with a fresh face." He sighed and looked around the room, "Maybe a little touching up wouldn't hurt."

"A little…" Irvine whistled sarcastically.

"Alright girl when can you start?" He asked abruptly as he turned back to Selphie.

She nodded obediently, "Right away sir! I'll work really hard I promise. This place will shine!" She was almost hopping in place with her hands over her chest. "I won't let you down!"

"Yeah, whatever. Anyways, there's a reason I haven't hired any help earlier. You think you're the first person to ask me for a job?" He raised an eyebrow and released a cruel chortle, "Hah! I don't got the money to keep full time help round' here. You want to work here, you get paid low. That's all I can manage. You be lucky for that."

Selphie nodded, "Right sir! I'll manage!"

"And," He looked at Selphie's ragged coat covering her clothes that were too small for her. "Dress nicer. I don't want people thinking I got a beggar in here. Now get out of here, I expect ya here crack of dawn tomorrow. You get 100 gil a week no negotiations!"

'''''''''''''''''''''''

"Irvine you were great!" Selphie danced in twirls in the snow as snowflakes fell. "I mean I really have seen a lot of people try to squeeze a job out of him. You're amazing!"

With a twinkle in his eye, Irvine leaned against a building watching Selphie happily spin. "Hey, what can I say? I'm just that good." He let his hat conceal his eyes, as it fell he heard Selphie's footsteps running towards him.

"Irvine if there's anything I can do thank you, consider it done!" To this Irvine lifted his eyes and met Selphie's gaze immediately.

"Really, now?" He said with hinted cunningness in his throat.

"Yeah anything!"

"Well, for now mind if we just went over back to your place?"

Rapidly Selphie turned about and headed down the street as she whistled a happy tune. Irvine followed close behind with a smirk across his face.

-------------------

"_Charity never makes a man less wealthy."_

_--The Islamic Quran_

-------------------


	9. Chapter 8

"_It's only love…"_

_Beautiful World  
__Chapter Eight_

Selphie pushed her door open and skipped in merrily. She spun on the tip of her toe and giggled. As Irvine came in, he closed the door behind him. The shack had dimmed incredibly with the door closed. Selphie didn't seem to mind, she was too happy in her little airy dance.

Very abruptly, she stamped her feet on the ground and halted her singsongs. She gasped and covered her mouth to muffle a scream she desired to release.

"Hey, hey, what's wrong?" Irvine asked concerned.

"Mr. Devin— oh I'm so stupid!" She bent her knees in and pulled against her hair. "Oh gosh, what am I going to do!"

"What about Mr. Devin?" Irvine asked curiously watching Selphie prancing about in self-punishment. "Shouldn't he be like, happy for you?"

Selphie stopped and stared at her dead hearth. "I don't know." She said quietly. Soundly she stepped to the small platform on which stood her fireplace. She stroked the pile of ash and sighed. "I really haven't ever done anything without, well telling him. Asking for his permission… it's just weird that I did this without letting him know anything."

"If he's smart he'll be happy? What is he your father?"

"No, no!" Selphie spun to Irvine and shook her head. "Not at all, it's just he's been so kind to me. He's done so much for me!" Her eyes burned with meaning, "You don't understand he only wants what's best for me I know it!"

"Yeah sure, but he doesn't own you. So what? You got a new job that you're happy with. If that Mr. Devin really cares about you he'll be glad." Irvine came and placed his hands on Selphie's shoulders to keep her still.

"You think so?" She squeaked.

"Of course," He smiled, "I mean why wouldn't he be? You're happy aren't you?"

Selphie nodded, her arms went around Irvine's waist as she hugged him tightly. Irvine replied and put his arms around her small frail body, not squeezing her too hard. She pulled away enough to see his face and smiled. "Right so I owe you something! What'll it be?"

Irvine moved in closer and winked, "How bout' a kiss?" Selphie nodded as she moved her hands from around his waist and back to her side.

She puckered her lips and moved her head close to his. Irvine closed his eyes and smiled, _finally! She is mine!_ Selphie planted a soft sweet kiss on his cheek. She pulled away and bowed her head happily.

"Hehe, you're easy going aren't ya?" She laughed.

Irvine stood with a hand over the part of his cheek that she kissed. He opened his eyes with a disappointed look and sighed. "I guess it wasn't meant to be." He uttered under his breath. He raised his head and forced a smile and the gay Selphie.

"I'm glad you're so happy."

"Oh I am!"

Blinking a few times Irvine sighted the door and looked at it with a miserable glance. "I guess I should head off now." He said slowly. His feet were like iron anvils as he dragged them to move.

"Wait!" Selphie called rushing to him. "Will you be back tomorrow" Her eyes met his. The big green irises looked at him pleadingly as she nearly begged him.

"I-I can't, I'm leaving tomorrow."

"Leaving? Where?"

"Back home, to Balamb."

Selphie stood still as Irvine kept moving. She let her arms hang loosely at her side as she sniffed softly. "I see."

Irvine turned around guiltily looking at her with her head hung. "Maybe I'll come back." He said hopefully. Her head shot up with happiness brimming her face.

"Well you know where to find me!" She called cheerfully. With a small nod, Irvine exited.

'''''''''''''''''''''

When Irvine arrived back at the hotel, Rinoa and Seifer had already escaped the Garden and returned to one of the many lobbies of the hotel. When Irvine arrived, they sat in a room with large glass windows showing a perfect view of hills untouched by buildings and traffic.

"Hey guys." He announced himself inside as he took a seat.

"Damn Kinneas, you've been gone since before the sun rose." Seifer said raising an eyebrow. "What the hell have you been doing?"

"Ah not much, just keeping my end of the bargain. Keeping some ladies happy without a penny out of my pocket." He said slyly as he relaxed in his seat.

"Since sunrise?!" Seifer shouted in disgust.

"Oh yeah."

A long groan escaped Seifer as he pulled out his wallet. He pulled out 500 gil and chucked it at Irvine. "You are sick Kinneas. I didn't think you would go through with it."

"Next time you won't underestimate me, eh?" Irvine said with a wink.

"Alright enough already you two. Let's just go pack for tomorrow." Rinoa said as she ushered the two of the to rise and leave the room. Seifer hastened without much effort, rather slightly embarrassed to lose a wager with Irvine.

Rinoa lingered with Irvine in the lobby as Irvine let out a merry tune. "So those girls must've been good if you were with them all day." She sighed hopelessly.

"Ah just between you and me I was just with one girl." He said with a laugh. Rinoa didn't say anything, simply took a seat by him.

She rested gracefully and looked away from her friend. An easy calm voice escaped her, "Oh Irvine," she said softly, "One of these days you'll want something more." She slapped her head and shook it. "Something more than just meaningless sex."

"Something like what you and Seifer have?" Irvine said raising an eyebrow, "Not likely Rin." He added in sarcastically, "As you cute as you two look and all."

"I mean it Irvine! One day you'll want a real relationship! What kind of girl will want to be with you though?" She snapped angrily.

"Oh come on Rin, you know me? Why are you judgin' like this?"

Rinoa groaned as she stood. She rested her elbow on Irvine's shoulder and laughed. "Yeah I do, and I still stick around to watch you take on dozens and dozens of girls. I guess I like complaining." She winked.

"What would I do without ya Rin?" Irvine smiled leaning his head back.

"Go broke for one thing." Rinoa laughed.

-----------------

_It was the summer after fourth grade that I came to realize that the connection we have with other people is necessary for our survival_

_--Joel Walker_

----------------


	10. Chapter 9

_"Netemo sametemo, shounen manga,"  
__("Whether awake or asleep, breathing boy's manga,")_

_Beautiful World  
__Chapter Nine_

Selphie reported work bright and early each morning. The store never looked any happier to see her, however he said nothing.

Just as promised Selphie did anything and everything the owner asked. When he didn't give any orders she cleaned the store thoroughly. Other orders he asked included restocking the shelves, managing the counter, counting the money, and so forth. Several customers came in and a new cheery face, as the owner predicted, gave them a more comfortable feeling than the gruff man that usually was here.

The owner had taken such a liking to the lack of work he needed to accomplish, he raised Selphie's salary 50 gil and made her run the shop on her own most days. She was much happier to do the job than he, and it showed. Most people were quite taken with her joyous smile and her even brighter greeting.

Although the store wasn't beautiful, Selphie's relentless cleaning did show effect and made it much more suitable. People would actually eat inside sometimes while chatting with her. The owner praised her actually saying that it promoted them to buy more.

Even with this happiness to wake and go to work, it wasn't fulfilling her needs. Selphie had become even thinner and scrawnier than before. Although she wasn't outgoing when she was at the fountain, two or three clients paid more for her than a month of working at the store.

Her body became even frailer, but she continued to smile, work, and live as though nothing were wrong. Often as a thanks, the owner would allow her to eat something that was from the store, however her meals were meager. Their growth didn't seem near either.

_No matter what_, Selphie thought every morning when she trotted off to work, t_here's no way I'll go back to the fountain._

''''''''''''''''''''''''

The girls at the fountain no matter still remained loyal to their duties. The lonely men of Trabia could still come to them for their needs.

One man however, was never pleased when he came.

He wore a long dark coat and a hat that shadowed his eyes when outdoors. Several times he had come to the fountain, peered at the present ladies in their glimmering dresses that hung loosely from their thin bodies, and walked off unimpressed.

Today, he came and presented himself closer than he had come before. He bowed politely before the ladies and spoke properly to them.

"Would you fine ladies be able to answer a question for me?" He said a deep voice.

The women, although couldn't see his face at all sat with interest as they stared at him intently. "Oh sir," one purred softly, "I'll answer all questions you have."

The man chuckled, his hat moving with the rhythmic pulsing of his body. "Ah, very kind of you to offer more than I have come for but rest assured I have only one question for ladies such as yourselves."

"What is it?" The lady continued now annoyed that she was rejected without even hearing the terms of her companionship.

"I've come several times and each time I do, one of you is absent. A certain girl I know of, her name is Selphie. Is she amongst you today and occupied?"

The women exchanged glances, the one who was originally talking to the man stood up and faced him. "Selphie huh? That girl hasn't been here in weeks."

"Ever since that foreigner took her." Another woman added in bitterly.

"Foreigner?" The man asked sounding calm.

"Yeah, some boy came here looking for an escort. While we were all here, he pushed us and took that Selphie girl. She hasn't shown up since."

A frown appeared on the man's face, however no one could see. "I thank you ladies humbly." He turned around and headed through the crowds without another word.

'''''''''''''''''''

"What are the elements?"

Irvine yawned and pushed aside a book. The lights of the library were dim now, they were supposed to be closed completely, however with SeeD written exams approaching the librarians allowed the library to open late.

"Irvine?" Rinoa asked as she poked Irvine's unconscious head that rested against the study table. "What're the elements?"

"Fire, ice, lighting," Irvine mumbled as he tried to recollect, "Water, wind, earth—"

"That's right, keep going!" Rinoa said excitedly.

"No! I don't want to keep going! I gave up a date tonight to study! I don't want to do this anymore!" Irvine groaned as he hid his face under a nearby book. "It's so damn tiring!"

Rinoa sighed and closed her book. "Oh boo-hoo Irvine, you missed a date. Wouldn't you prefer passing your exam?" She stood up with a stretched her arms. "You think you're the only one who rather be someplace else?" She rubbed her eyes, "I'm tired too Irvine. Let's just call it a night."

Irvine was already asleep on the study table. With a shrug, Rinoa patted Irvine's head gently and walked off.

Longs hours of the night slowly passed on as the library went from quiet, to deathly silent. All study groups had gradually dispersed and retired for the night. Books left by studious students stacked high on all tables.

"Awww look at this mess!"

Two girls in student uniforms entered the library. They were two small petite brunettes with their hair tied up. One had a single pigtail with light brown hair and the other had dark brown almost black hair that was tied in the back with two long locks passing her shoulders. "It'll take us hours to clean this up!" She sighed.

"Whose bright idea is it to keep this place open till midnight anyways?" The girl with a pigtail shrugged as she picked up a stack of books. She stepped lightly through the rows of shelves and began sorting.

With a long yawn, the brown haired girl followed her lead grabbing an armful of books herself. "I don't know, why can't people just study in their dorms like we do? It's so irresponsible." She rubbed her eyes and with a sudden gasp, she dropped the books with a loud tumble on the ground.

Her small pigtail flailing left and right madly, her friend ran to her side frantically. "What's wrong Jeri?" She asked. The brunette, Jeri, breathed in calmly and shook her head.

"I got frightened, there's someone sitting over there." She pointed towards Irvine's peaceful sleeping body that only a head against the study desk. "Well, we got to wake him up. You go ahead and do it Amy."

Amy threw a scowl at her friend, "No way! You do it. He looks big, what if he gets mad?" she shook her head stubbornly.

"Oh Amy, that's ridiculous! Everyone knows bullies don't get caught in libraries. Last time I heard there was a attack made on a victim by a bookworm was… uh never?" Jeri laughed as she leaned against a bookshelf.

"If you're so brave you wake him up and tell him to get the heck out. We got enough work on us!" Amy turned on her heels and disappeared behind the darkness.

"I got an idea!" Jeri smiled widely and rushed to Amy's side. "How about whoever wakes him up doesn't have to stay here and clean the books up." Amy looked at her carefully.

"Nice try Jeri, I'm still not going to do it."

"Then I will!" Jeri said with a proud look as she trotted off to Irvine's side.

She came to an easy stop to where Irvine was sleeping. Biting her lip softly she observed his black hat that rose with each exhale. Carefully, she pulled out a single finger and poked him gently on the shoulder. When Irvine made no response, she repeated her action. Still Irvine did not budge. Jeri inhaled deeply and shoved him with both hands.

Irvine fell off his seat with a loud topple as the books that were under his arms fell with him. After the loud clatter, Irvine was awake, alert, and angry. He rubbed his head and stared at Jeri. "What the heck was that!" He snapped as he snatched his hat still on the table.

"Sorry, you need to leave. We're closing the library up." Jeri said shyly. Irvine raised an eyebrow and shook his head.

"Oh, I'm in the library still? Geez that explains a lot. Okay well I'll get out of your hair then, what'd you say your name was?" Irvine blabbered groggily.

"I didn't say my name, it's Jeri though." She smiled kindly as Irvine stretched his arms. "I'm head of the library committee." She added in as he regained his posture.

He shrugged and took a step, "Okay well I guess I should get outta here." As he moved forward, he lost his balance and nearly tripped. "Damn I need to wake up." He slapped his cheek and looked at Jeri who still stood in front of him."Huh." He said softly as he stood straight.

"What?" Jeri asked confused.

"Nothing, just thought you're kinda cute."

Jeri blushed and pushed her hair behind her shoulder. She attempted to remain casual at the cowboy's blunt remark. Her cheeks turning evermore crimson did not help. "Okay, well heh I guess you should get going so we can get to work." Irvine nodded and looked around the room.

"Who's we?" He asked frankly.

"Amy and I." Jeri said pointing behind her. Irvine only gave her a weird look as to say, "I have no idea what you're talking about." With a sudden haste, Jeri stared back to see Amy had vanished from her spot between the shelves. "Amy! You scheming snipe!"

"What's wrong?" Irvine asked as he stretched his arms lazily. His lanky arms looked so long they seemed to tickle the ceiling. Jeri looked back and gave a long sad look.

"Well, you see Amy and I had a sort of accord on whomever woke you up didn't have to clean up this mess. Instead of following our deal she's just runaway leaving me all the work!" Jeri sighed loudly and knelt on the ground to scoop up books into her arms. "I'll be here all night at this rate."

"But I will stay here in the castle of the moon, without sleep, without rest, until you return to my arms," Irvine hummed as he handed Jeri a book.

As a hand gently reached over and touched the smooth cover of the book handed to her, suddenly warmth came over her. A pinkish tint flushed her cheeks as she gazed in wonder at Irvine. He towered over her, his silhouette barely made out from the light of the moon. A soft graceful smile touched her petite lips. "You've read _Pandora_?"

Irvine chuckled and smiled. "Of course I have." He tipped off his hat with a wink, "Good book too."

However, Irvine had only read _Pandora_ during history class while studying the Lunatic Pandora. In addition, he despised the book with such a passion that he burned his copy immediately upon finishing it as he returned to his comics of sharpshooters.

Jeri stood gracefully and released an angelic giggle. "Well this is a first, a man whose read _Pandora _and man enough to admit what a fine work of literature it is!" Standing with a stack of book, Jeri continued to blush.

"You know, carrying books is heavy work, and definitely no job for a little lady like you. Let me help ya." Irvine reached and with little effort had the stack of books in his grasp.

"Well thank you!" Jeri said. "Follow me and I'll show you where they go."

It became apparent a moment later that _Pandora_ was Jeri's favorite mythology, story, fable, whatever it was, it was her passion. There wasn't a girl alive who hadn't come upon a Sorceress/Knight tale they hadn't fancied and replaced themselves to be in it.

_Pandora_. A historical fiction was about the Sorceress Pandora, who akin many sorceresses before and after her fell in love with her knight. However, her knight unfortunately varied greatly in age. Her knight showed no concern in the matter and wished to be with her. Pandora decided she'd wait for him in a zone in which she couldn't age while her beloved grew older to be with her. She had the Lunatic Pandora built for her, which she named after herself, and flew to the moon. She swore to wait for knight there, 'in the castle of the moon.'

Unfortunately, which most girls don't notice, was the fact that _Pandora_ actually ended terribly. Her knight died in war before he could grow old enough for his sorceress to return. In mourning pain, she stoned her body creating the crystal pillar and brought her Lunatic Pandora along with monsters from the moon to avenge her lover. (A Final Fantasy VIII version of Pandora's box)

For hours on end, Jeri explained in detail what she loved about Epion, the knight.

"Epion is amazing, he was only 15 when he decided he'd protect her. He gave his entire life to her and swore such fidelity! All those years without her and he never was with another woman." Jeri turned around and pulled a book from Irvine's 11th stack he'd carried. She shelved carefully, rested her forehead against the books, and sighed. "Isn't that amazing?"

A loud thud followed as Irvine put the books back on the ground. Irvine brushed off his coat and rested an arm on the bookcase beside Jeri. "Well, Pandora was worth waiting for."

Jeri nodded not facing him, "I bet. A sorceress is usually quite beautiful…"

Irvine gently gripped Jeri's shoulders and pulled her to face him, "You're beautiful." His blue eyes were gentle in the moonlight as they met Jeri's. With a blush she attempted to move her head away, however she felt a presence that halted her. Irvine placed his lips over hers.

A gasp choked her; she stared wide-eyed as Irvine pulled away. He looked at her with a handsomely innocent face. "I'm sorry, I couldn't help myself." A chuckle left his lips as he rubbed the back of his neck and turned away. "Just that face you had reminded me of the part where Epion first kisses Pandora."

"Hah, what a joke. That was a battle scene." Jeri laughed turning her attention back to the bookshelf trying hard to get her mind concentrated on the tedious task. Irvine pushed aside a lock of her hair and shook his head gently.

"True, but he saw her with a hurt face,"

His touch against her cheek burned as it lingered on her cheek. Jeri kept her gaze at the spines of the books. The words were blurry, she couldn't make out the letters as her mind drifted back to Irvine. She bit her lip and ignored him, or rather attempted too.

"And he couldn't stand his failure, and he told her—"

"I'll protect your smile." They said in union.

Irvine nodded as Jeri hesitantly faced him again. She slowly raised her head until it met view with his. Her body felt as though it were shaking in anticipation. Irvine jerked his head at her and chuckled. "Smile for me will ya?"

Nodding slowly Jeri moved a step closer to Irvine.

'''''''''''''''''''''

Jeri looked at herself in the mirror and pulled her hair tie out of her long black locks. She let her fingers comb through as the strands of delicate ebony hair caressed her shoulders. Jeri let her eyes wander to the side of her mirror where the reflection of the handsome cowboy stood.

Long and muscular, he stood leaning against the door of her room his hat over his eyes, legs and arms crossed, with only a sly smile on his lips.

Slowly Jeri stood up moving the chair that was in front of the mirror. The legs scraping against the floor alerted Irvine. He raised his hat and with two slender but deft fingers, he pulled his black hat and swiftly cast it to the side of the room. Jeri still had her view and attention captivated in the reflection of the mirror.

Standing behind her, Irvine laced his arms around her waist and moved his lips to her neck. She gasped as his arms caressed her softly and moved gently across her abdomen. A soft moan escaped her as she spun around and kissed Irvine passionately on the lips.

Irvine, being apparently the more dominant and stronger one, pushed Jeri against the wall of her dorm and escaped her lips and moved down back to her neck. His hands tangled through her long hair. Jeri hungrily pulled at Irvine's long brown coat. Once Irvine understood the message, he threw it off himself and carried on his school uniform shirt underneath. Jeri finally attempted to push Irvine and the two cascaded onto her bed.

With a mess of tongues and clothes thrown off Irvine enjoyed one of his many nights with a girl. Jeri enjoyed what she thought was a night with a knight she dreamt of being with.

Her mistake however, is the fact that Irvine is no knight.

Only wearing undergarments Irvine moved his hand to Jeri's lacy underwear and gently removed it. He kissed the inner aspect of her thigh as she moaned in pleasure.

He is, and always has been a sharpshooter.

-------------------

"_It is with our passions, as it is with fire and water, they are good servants but bad masters.__"_

_--__Aesop_

------------------


	11. Chapter 10

"_Yume mite bakka,"  
__("Simply dreaming,")_

_Beautiful World  
__Chapter Ten_

In the sky over Balamb, the moon hung high. It seemed to drag now falling and hiding behind the clouds, sinking, setting. Light fell through windows limited as the small streaks of silver light shined weakly. The weakness of light went well with the weakness of noise. All Balamb slept, rested, and dreamt.

The majority of Balamb, rather…

Irvine rested his head back on the pillow folded to elevate his head. He stared at the ceiling failing to notice that the small details were becoming harder to see with the lack of moonlight. His eyes stared at every crevice putting it together with an image of a bullet or a gun.

Irvine noticed a line on the ceiling, a wavy one looked akin to the curve of a slender woman. His mind gave it the other half of its body, clothes, and a head. He looked at his nameless woman as a face appeared on it.

_"You know, I had a lot of fun tonight! I haven't had so much fun in awhile!" _

The amusing hairdo and the cheerful smile came to life. She waved her arms with enthusiasm and danced toe to toe with her arms spread out. "Well you know where to find me!" It echoed into the emptiness of the room. With a final wave, Selphie ran into the white of the ceiling disappearing.

Irvine released a puff of air with a smile. _What a funny girl._ He rested again, turned forward, and looked down at his bare chest. Jeri rested her sleeping head over it with her black hair silkily draped over his abdomen. One arm rested near her face stroking his muscles unconsciously. Shrugging, Irvine rolled out of bed with Jeri's head falling gently onto the mattress.

Still considering the gentle girl in his mind Irvine stared out to the moon. His ran a hand through his long hair and sighed. The clouds covered the moon, and left Irvine in darkness. He let his head hang, and turned over miserably to Jeri who mumbled softly as she turned.

A moment later Irvine scouted the floor for his clothes. After locating them, he slipped them on carelessly. He left several buttons of his uniform shirt open and didn't even bother to put his arms through the sleeves of his coat.

Jeri rested in silence without considering twice there was an absence on the bed. While she laid in slumber Irvine looked around for a sheet of paper. Once he had found one, he pulled a pen from his coat pocket and scribbled a note onto it. He lifted his hat that landed perfectly on Jeri's desk and placed it proudly on his head.

Leaving the folded note on the desk, Irvine soundly exited the dorm.

_When Epion died, he looked at the moon right? He said this  
__"For you, I'll wait an eternity in the afterlife. For you, I die with a smile, and for you, I apologize."  
__Thanks for the night. –Irvine _

He passed the connecting room and came out to the open hall. He breathed out in the open air from the windows along the walls. The cool night winds tickled his exposed skin.

_Need to find a SeeD next time; those dorms are too damn tiny._ Irvine's eyelids drooped heavily as he walked down the hall. His hand fumbled carelessly on his doorknob as he entered the connecting room before his and his roommate's dorm.

In the connecting room, there were two chairs and weak table, mainly used to study. Often Irvine would study with Rinoa or rather not study at all. He rendered the table useless unless used it to eat or play cards on.

His roommate, however, begged to take a differ. Everyday he'd study, hoping his grades would be high enough. He was far more dedicated to his studies than Irvine could ever be. The keen difference was simple, Irvine knew he was the top sharpshooter and practice was little less than necessary. On the contrary, his roommate practices in pursuit of getting better as the only goal.

Tonight, his roommate was like one of the many students cramming for the SeeD written exam that would arrive in weeks to come. Printed notes were scattered messily across the table with two books flipped open. One of the books was being utilized as a pillow for the unconscious blonde sleeping.

Irvine didn't have any particular desire to wake his roommate, the two of them would bicker often. This was especially true when Irvine came back to the dorm in his current attire, and his timing.

It wasn't as though his roommate was against the idea of lack of commitment. He himself was in no relationship for that reason he claimed. It was more a certain envy that crept through him and eventually turned into frustration, and aggravation. It sickened him that Irvine could receive hundreds of women and he could barely attain one.

He was a great fighter, a good son, an excellent student, and an all around good guy, however no one matched Irvine's lady skills.

Watching his roommate sleep uncomfortably on top of hard books with a pencil still in his hand, Irvine felt a bit pity for him. Although he didn't want a squabble, he decided to wake him up.

"Zell, Zell, HEY ZELL!"

Abruptly Zell's body jerked up out of his seat. His head turned side to side as he came to a fighting stance. "What the hell, what's going on!" He said only semi-alert.

"Go to bed." Irvine said as he smoothly walked into his dorm.

Before Zell could comment, Irvine shut the door behind loudly and threw himself onto his bed falling asleep immediately.

''''''''''''''''''

Irvine could hear Zell scrambling about the room outside gathering his notes and books. A few hours had passed since Irvine came to 'sleep'. Time for class had approached.

"Damnit! Where's that book!"

With a cool, sigh Irvine rested back and looked at the ceiling above. He laid an arm behind his head and relaxed.

"Yo Kinneas!" Zell banged on his door furiously. "Have you seen my book? The green one with big yellow letters on it?" He softened his voice as he moved his hand from hitting the door. Zell had incredible strength with his fists, and he'd often gotten into trouble about destroying school property. It wasn't as though he had a temper problem, simply underestimated his own strength.

Irvine considered his options. He could acknowledge Zell and tell him where the book was, however he'd then need to listen to the incisive noise of Zell scrambling about. He could ignore him, but then he'd need to hear the scrambling along with some mutters and curses. He could also, just get up and fetch Zell's book that he recalled sat near the door buried under papers.

_Decisions, decisions…_

"Kinneas!"

Groaning, Irvine rose from his bed, brushed off his uniform, (which he had been wearing for quite some time) and picked up his hat from the side of his bed. "I'm coming." He said dully. A moment later, he opened his door and stared down at Zell. "It's right there." He pointed at the messy clutter of pens and papers by the door. Not waiting for Zell to respond, Irvine glided over and unveiled it. "Here."

Zell took it gratefully and gave him a halfhearted salute. "Thanks man." He placed the book carefully under his arm and put a hand on the doorknob. "So who were you with last night?" He asked emotionless.

"Ah, some girl." Irvine replied more cheerful, but still rather nonchalant.

"Oh," Said Zell. He opened the door and walked through without another word, as if knowing it was completely futile to even try to make Irvine feel inferior on the subject. Irvine stood in silence for a moment, he intended on sleeping a bit before heading to class, but now that Zell woke him up…

"I guess I can kill time before class." He yawned stretching his long arms. As he exited, he noticed a certain girl running towards him with her black girl flailing behind her.

"Irvine!" She called waving an arm. She rushed over and halted herself unsteadily. "Whew, there you are!"

Irvine smiled widely and nodded his head. It was refreshing to see a friend in the morning. "Morning Rin, whatcha up to?"

"I'm looking for Seifer, have you seen him?" She asked moving her head side to side scouting. She didn't bother meeting Irvine's gaze, simply jumped to look over his tall shoulder.

"Sorry," Irvine said, "I haven't—"

"Oh, okay thanks!" With that, Rinoa rushed off.

'''''''''''''''''''

Half an hour later, Irvine found himself in class, early. It wasn't as though he didn't like being on time, but his presence in the empty classroom seemed useless, and unsettling. It only took a few minutes for other students to join him in the class. Mainly anti-social boys who had nothing better to do. Irvine felt annoyed accompanied by them.

When class started, Rinoa had joined Irvine beside him. She sat upright with her panel turned on ready to take notes. She hadn't bothered to speak to Irvine quite yet.

Instructor Akii entered the classroom promptly the moment it was to start. He sat behind his desk and informed students that their field exam was to be completed some time between their written exams and SeeD exam time at the end of next month.

"I expect you all to obtain a low level Fire GF from the nearby Fire Cavern. If anyone needs support, or have any questions please come to me after class." His voice was stern and monotone. The idea of asking him for support came rather disturbingly.

Irvine sat back unconcerned Akii began saying his lecture. Rinoa typed on her study panel madly hoping she didn't miss a word. Other studious students did that exactly. Some girls logged on to Balamb Square and chatted with other students ignoring homeroom. Some boys logged on to the net and looked at dirty pictures of girls.

At this, Irvine simply snorted. The idea of a guy needing a naughty magazine, or dirty pictures disgusted him. He never needed any of these items to put a smile on his face. If he wanted a girl, he'd simply choose one from the crowd and there he had all he desired.

Zell on accident was caught gazing a dirty magazine once when Irvine walked into his room. He had never seen Zell turn so red in his life. Although Zell expected Irvine to understand, he never even let himself touch another naughty magazine from that day. The face Zell had when Irvine first walked in still brought chuckles to Irvine.

"Oh, before I forget, did anyone attend that convention at Trabia Garden in here?" Akii asked digressing from his lecture of the history of the Trabian crater.

Rinoa thought about raising her hand, she shook her head and leaned back. Irvine simply laughed. A few girls in the front row nodded their heads.

"Ah wonderful. Well you see, other instructors have been praising Trabia so much for their work that Trabia is holding one more convention to prepare students for their written exams. It'll be this weekend if any of you are interested." Akii continued.

Irvine's perked up and smiled widely. A thought hadn't crossed his mind but the idea of going back to Trabia immediately appealed to him. A few moments later, he finally recollected that he wanted to go perhaps to revisit Selphie. How was she? Did she ever return to the fountain? Would he finally be able to finish the mission he left?

"Sir I'd like to go!" He jumped from his seat with a happy look. Rinoa looked at him bizarrely.

"I wouldn't!" She hissed.

"Aw too bad Rin, anyways Instructor sign me up!" Irvine continued not even looking at Rinoa.

"Irvine? I'm glad to see so much enthusiasm, but if I may ask why the sudden interest?"

"Well, actually sir I went to the first convention and I feel I didn't learn quite enough. If I may say sir, I knew," He straightened his posture and gave Instructor Akii a sober look, "there was so much more I needed to learn. Leaving was painful…" He turned away and sighed. "Please don't deny me the chance to learn more!"

Akii now looked bored from the obvious theatrical performance. "Enough Mr. Kinneas, I'll enlist you. They leave from the Balamb train station at 5 AM. Don't be late."

Irvine sat himself down happily and leaned back. Rinoa gave him an angry look and slapped his shoulder. When Irvine jerked up and looked to her she hissed, "What the heck are you doing!? You only miss one day of class and your whole weekend! Plus, it was a disaster last time. I hope you know I refuse to go this time."

"I was hopin' you weren't." Irvine winked as he placed his arms behind his head and rested his head for the remainder of the class.

--

_There can be no spirituality, no sanctity, no truth without the female sex._

_--__Diane Frolov and Andrew Schneider_

--

R/R Please!


	12. Chapter 11

"_Jibun ga suki jyanai no?"  
__("Not liking yourself?)_

_Beautiful World  
__Chapter Eleven_

"You still didn't tell me why you're going back." Rinoa groaned as she flipped through Irvine's drawers pulling out a variety of clothing articles.

While Rinoa was packing busily in Irvine's dorm, right outside on the small study table Irvine and Seifer played Triple Triad. Now, Seifer, who hadn't been paying much attention, had just lost his precious Ruby Dragon card.

He growled under his breathe, "Damnit Rinoa what are we still doing here? If you're mad at this cowgirl take it out on him. Why the hell are you packing for him?"

Irvine leaned back on his chair so that it was rocking on its back two legs. With a victorious smile, he concealed his face with his black cowboy hat and put his arms behind his head. "You know Seifer, no one asked you to be here. I'd be happier if you'd take a hike."

"Shut it Kinneas."

Rinoa put her hands on her hips and sighed. "You know Seifer, for the first time," She darted a look towards Irvine, "Irvine's actually right. If you're bored you can go." Seifer swiftly came to his feet and dragged his legs irritably towards her.

"That still doesn't answer what the hell you're doing here." He hissed.

With an innocent smile, Rinoa knelt on the ground. "Oh you know," she let out a small giggle, "Just because I'm upset with him I don't want him dying of frostbite cause the idiot didn't pack the right things." She leapt up and spun around lightly on her toes. "Then I won't have a handsome cowboy who'll listen to me all the time and you know," Her cheeks were tinted pink as she winked, "help me with other things."

Seifer groaned and without another word, he trudged out of the room and slammed the door behind him.

As Seifer disappeared, Irvine sat his chair upright and turned to Rinoa who now returned to packing his suitcase. "Is that all I'm good for?" Irvine asked awkwardly. Rinoa raised an eyebrow and slapped her head.

"Not even that much. I said most of that cause he was annoying me." She threw herself on the bed letting her legs flail beside the edge for a second as they fell. She clasped her kneecaps and looked to Irvine still sitting right outside the doorway. "Things are so weird nowadays. It's like I don't even know him."

"Psh I never knew the guy, glad of it too mind ya." Irvine said in a sarcastically.

"You know we barely talk about anything. He's always in the Training Center, and when he's not there he's with Fujin and Rajin picking on little kids." Rinoa stared off at the ceiling.

"Isn't he always like that?" Irvine shrugged casually.

"Not exactly, he's always so," Rinoa shuddered, "Angry."

"Like I said, isn't he—"

"NO he's not!"

She stood up and placed on her hands on her hips again. "I just know there's something about class that's really bugging him, and it's making him act weird about everything!" She spun around and gazed out the window into the night. "He's never talked about it, and always changes the subject. It's worrying me, Irvine."

Irvine came, hugged Rinoa from behind her, and rested his chin on top of her head. "You're worrying too much. Take it easy, eh?"

Rinoa stood still not returning Irvine's hug but still looked out the window as though she lost. "It's hard not to, I feel like we're drifting far apart. It's nothing like it was before." Her eyes remained in a daze as though she felt a feeling of regret.

With a flirtatious glint in his sparkling eyes, Irvine gently turned Rinoa about and smiled at her. His teeth were flashing white and his eyes a beautiful blue that would have any girl lost in a sweet submission. "You know," He purred in a soft melodic voice, "I prey on girls in your condition."

Slyly he brought his face close to Rinoa's ears. Before he took another step Rinoa shoved her friend away with sarcastic might. She squinted her eyes at him and made a scornful face. "You can get any girl Irvine, don't bother on me. If I really need you to cheer me up, sleeping in your bed won't be one of the ways." She batted him further away and spun her attention back to Irvine's suitcase.

Although she had batted him, Irvine remained behind her, with arms wrapped around her. "Aw come on Rin, I won't tell Seifer or anything!" He said playfully.

"I'm not kidding Irvine!" Rinoa said in a half complaining voice, "Get off of me or I'm going to stop packing for you!"

As the two argued, the front door before the study table slid open as an exhausted blonde dragged himself in. His books fell from his arms as he leapt away from its mess to contain his balance. He groaned and knelt on the ground. After reaching for a book or two, he punched the ground irritated.

"Hey Zell." Irvine greeted letting go of Rinoa. Rinoa sent a grin but returned to folding clothes and placing them snuggly into Irvine's duffel.

Zell tapped the side of his face with his index finger in a sort of wave. He collected all his books and dropped them into his room. He brushed his hands off on one another and walked to Irvine's open room. The cowboy now had sat himself beside his duffel bag while Rinoa patiently packed it.

"What're you doing Rinoa?" He asked in a confused tone.

"Just assuring something," Rinoa shook her head hopelessly at Irvine and tilted her neck when facing Zell. "I know Irvine is totally ridiculous when it comes to packing. Last time we went to Trabia he nearly froze to death. I swear I think all he packed were condoms!" Rinoa shook her head while hitting her forehead with the heel of her palm.

"Rin!" Irvine snapped.

"I mean seriously, this guy has really bad survival tactics." A giggle escaped Rinoa as she noticed a book in Zell's hands. Her face transformed in wonder as she exclaimed, "Is that _Goodbye_ _Pururun_?" Her hands immediately grabbed for it as she held it in the light. "I've been trying to get this book for—ever!" She glanced back to Zell, "How on earth did you get a hold of this? I've asked that library girl, you know the one with the one pigtail in the back? Well I've asked her for this book for weeks and she keeps telling me it's been on hold!"

Zell scratched the back of his head and chuckled. "Really? Weeks?" He caught the look of boredom on Irvine's face in the back. "Oh yeah, I was just going to read that right now. I finally went to the library to check it out, so do you two mind keeping it a bit down?"

"Oh of course! Tell me when you return it so I can get it!" Rinoa said ecstatically returning the book back to Zell. The blonde happily trotted off to his room and closed the door loudly.

Irvine rested his head on the wall beside his bed with incredibly boredom while Rinoa returned to his attention. "What, do you not know **anyone** else who reads?"

Rinoa raised her head and looked to the ceiling in thought. "Not really, and Zell isn't the avid reader either. It's just Seifer's only interested in Sorceress and Knight books, and you—" She paused and gave Irvine a long look up and down. "Well you probably only have dirty girly magazines."

"HEY, HEY, HEY PARTNER!" Irvine jumped defensively. "I do not own any of that junk!"

With a small shrug, Rinoa zipped Irvine's bag and walked gracefully out of the room. "Alright, whatever you say. Anyways, I need to get going. Angelo's probably hungry. Get some sleep, I'll be here bright and early."

'''''''''''''''''''''

The sun itself remained beneath the horizon. The sky emitted no color, or rather the darkest one of all. It was pitch black when Irvine and Rinoa, amongst other students in small amounts left dragging bags from the gates of Balamb Garden. The march was solemn, and silent.

Irvine still didn't believe himself conscious until Rinoa's dog big his hand. When the cowboy finally looked semi-alert, the dog waved his tail happily waiting for the attention that the two sleep-deprived students failed to give. Angelo barked loudly making Rinoa smile however still no fast motions.

"Man, I didn't think this one out." Irvine chuckled rubbing his sleepy and tired eyes. Rinoa made no comment; she remained at his side for the sole purpose of being a loyal friend. It was a silent unspoken code of fidelity that whenever the other may slightly need the other, without hesitance there they would find themselves.

As children growing up in Galbadia Garden, Rinoa often had the unpleasant chance of victimization by rude, immature boys. Although Irvine loved playing alongside these very boys, he never abandoned his friend and stood up for her. In addition, Rinoa never enjoyed, rather only dreaded visiting her parent's home. For this too Irvine would cancel any prior plan to join Rinoa as support.

So therefore, Rinoa found she walking half asleep with only Angelo's barking keeping her conscious towards the Balamb train station.

"Irvine?" Rinoa asked softly with a yawn. "When does the sun rise?"

They had come into the barren town. It seemed barren and desolate. Balamb had very little nightlife and slept with its citizens. Several shopkeepers were inside the store preparing it for the day; very few things shy the hotel and train station, actually functioned for customers yet.

"Why?" He responded not even considering what the answer may be.

The train station seemingly had exceeded their capacity rate with too many people getting off, and the ambush of students trying to get on. The conductors roared loudly to order passengers about.

"I don't like walking in the dark." She said with a yawn, acting nonchalant towards the massive noise from the station. Irvine turned to her and chuckled. He slipped his wallet out and pulled 150 gil out.

"Here go sleep at the hotel for a little while, and when the taxi's are running again take one home."

Rinoa stared awkwardly at the bills. "Is that the money I gave you for your trip?" She asked somewhat cross.

Irvine shook his head innocently and bowed his head. "That wouldn't be too kind of me would it?" He tipped his hat, "I sold some Dino Bones I found in the training center and got like 300 gil. So just chill." He winked.

Content, Rinoa clasped the money and looked over to the train with conductors beckoning passengers to come aboard now. A small sigh released from her lips as she turned over to the tall cowboy. "How long are you going to be gone?"

Irvine knelt, tickled Angelo's ear, and stood straight to face Rinoa. He hugged friendly and gave her a small peck on the cheek. "It's not going to be long Rin." He waved goodbye and disappeared into the masses.

'''''''''''''''''''

The train ride was incredibly tedious without Rinoa. Although, it didn't help that the instructors started a new policy, no co ed cabins.

Irvine slept on the top bunk of the student cabin with boredom hanging thick in the air. He overheard several students beneath him scrambling with books asking about junctions.

"Str-J is best utilized with a, what kind of magic?"

"Isn't it a high leveled recovery magic?"

"No that's Hp-J!"

Their noise did occasionally irritate Irvine but he preferred using his brain cells to simply imagine something else in order to ignore them.

He spent the train remember Selphie. Where did she live? How did he get there? What was the name of the store she worked at? For a moment in time, he thought about the fountain. Surely, she wouldn't be there…

''''''''''''''''

Selphie stumbled into her small house her hands full with a pot full of snow. She dropped the pot with a clatter against her cold cement floor. "Whew!" She wiped her forehead and pushed the pot across the room to her small hearth with a fire crackling soundly.

The snow in the pot melted quickly as she transferred it to a bowl. Once the bowl was full, she poured the rest of the contents into a pitcher. The pitcher barely contained any contents. With that acknowledged, Selphie grabbed her pot and strained to get it outdoors again. She went behind her home where there lay unscathed piles of white and scooped armfuls into her pot.

Her work was finally done she closed her door and rested by the hearth. She breathed in heavily; winded by the labor she had no strength for.

In retrospect, her home was actually bigger than she ever needed. It used to belong to someone much more well off than she. All she used was the few feet in front of her hearth. There was a pad and blanket, an old suitcase with clothes, and a few dishes. The empty square room shack was desolate and empty.

Selphie hummed merrily as she pulled out a small package of buns and slid one out carefully. She so carefully spent half of her hard earned pay the package of three buns. There were a few other food articles saved in a hole in the wall behind the hearth, but today Selphie had been craving these buns.

She sipped her water, slightly warmed from just being melted, but still too cold to drink comfortably. Selphie placed her water down, bit in to her bun, and sat happily chewing it slowly and softly.

The wind howled like a wolf mourning to the moon. It ferocity shook the small home harshly. Selphie paid no mind as she swallowed her first bite. Snow leaked in unwanted, dripping down the walls. Selphie bit in to her second bite. Like a bolt of lighting, the door swung open and slammed against the wall.

Selphie leapt to her feet, bun still in hand. It was a common event to be robbed. It occurred several times to Selphie, and being the helpless one she is, she surrendered her current food and money every time. It often proved to her advantage, robbers who knew she was this way would refuse to let any muggers come near her. Tonight however, Selphie desperately wanted this bun. Her eyes swelled with tears as she imagined her starving stomach moaning for another week until her next paycheck.

There stood a dark tall figure in the doorway. He entered slowly and behind him closed the door. He was covered head to toe, and the dim light from the fire didn't aide any. He slowly slipped his coat off revealing a perfect black suit. It had intricate stitches comfortably styling him, custom made for his body alone. As he advanced forward, he let his hat fly to the winds that found its way through the walls. It unveiled his slick black hair and healthy face.

Before Selphie stood Mr. Devin.

"Oh Selphie," He said bowing his head politely, "it's been so long." He finished his sentence lowering his eyes.

--

"_Do not mistake consequence for fate."_

_-Kirstin Brown_

--


	13. Chapter 12

"_Nani ga hoshii ka wakaranakute"  
__("Not knowing what you want")_

_Beautiful World  
__Chapter Twelve_

"Mr. Devin!"

Selphie threw her arms in the air waving with joy as she skipped merrily to Devin who gradually raised his arms kindly as Selphie hugged him caringly. "I haven't seen you forever!" She embraced him tightly, rubbing her face into his chest, smelling his expensive cologne. For a single moment she squeezed him as hard as she could, which wasn't very tight in retrospect, and released. She stood before him with her hands finger locked behind her back.

Her bright smile gave a contagious feeling to Devin. A small grin spread upon his face as well. "How are you my dear? I hadn't seen you in so long I feared something may have happened to you." He said in a voice more solemn and quiet than his normal attitude.

"Just the best! I have so much to tell you!" Selphie spread her arms out like an enthusiastic bird about to take flight. She danced toe to toe and brought a hand to touch the side of her face. "You won't believe it!"

Devin released a small laugh cold as the ice outside. "Trust me, my dear. I'm prepared to hear anything you may say." His eyes lowered and his smile was thinning, still existent, but grimly disappearing. "I've been curious though, please enlighten me."

Nodding excitedly Selphie rushed back to her fire and grabbed her bun, "Well I got a new job!" She squeaked about to take another bite.

Mr. Devin glided across the floor like a gargoyle across a black sky. He grasped the bun before it met with Selphie's lips and looked at it curiously. "What a miserable thing." He said frankly. With that, he tossed it a few feet behind him. When he turned back with a new smirk, he saw Selphie's awe-stricken face. "What's this about a new job?"

Selphie shook her head to return from the shock of her beloved meal flying across the room. _I'll eat it when he leaves._ She nodded and opened her mouth to speak, "Yeah I left the fountain. Isn't that great?!"

There was still a smile upon Devin's strong healthy face, but there was also a façade. The smile seemed to be cracking as though no longer sincere. It peeled and dusted away so slowly. It was not slow enough for Selphie to understand the matter, of course. "Do carry on my dear." He said with a voice so low it sounded like the rumble of thunder.

"A friend I met, Irvine, helped me get it. I'm so hap—"

Selphie felt a burning pain on her face. She was on the cold ground in the center of the room confused at what had just happened. Her face felt as though it was on fire. The stone on the ground didn't cushion what apparently was a thrusting blow. Cautiously she stood up carefully and noticed Mr. Devin still before her fireplace with a thin smile and his eyebrows arched.

"Selphie? What're are you doing over there?" He asked innocently.

A flashback from years ago swept Selphie's mind. Devin had a smile on his face yes, but his eyes showed an anger, a hatred she saw only once before. It was the time she met Jaxon Ogleworth. From that moment, she recalled, she prayed she would never encounter those eyes again.

"Do continue what you were saying."

Selphie swallowed slowly and nodded. "I— he was really nice, you might li—" A striking blow in her abdomen cut her off. She fell on the ground and cried out. The clatter of the metal pitcher hitting the floor deafened her as she fell nimbly back on the stone. Her arms grasped her middle as she gasped for breath. This time, she saw Devin moving to the pitcher, picking it up… and thrusting it at her.

Water dampened her immediately, the pitcher released all its contents, but the pain from its impact against her was far greater concern. She heard foot falls, louder, louder.

"Dear Selphie," Devin said in soft voice, "I hardly expected this to happen. For that reason I never told you, Selphie I don't care for disobedience. In fact, no one dares cross me. Now dear, I'm also fully a believer of consequence."

Scared to see what would be awaiting her when she met views with Devin, Selphie turned in such a slow way that Devin had to grasp her shoulders and finish it. He had the look of anger still in his eyes, but a smile still across his face. The mix of two gave the appearance of a proper villain, but Selphie could only feel sick and anxious from fear.

"I'm sure," He said his voice calm, "that when I'm done here you'll understand." He lifted her to her feet, stroked her pale cheek and chuckled softly. Selphie's green eyes were wide in terror, as she felt completely helpless in Devin's grip. "Am I right?"

Before any response could possibly said, Devin threw Selphie's light and weak body across the room back to the hearth. Selphie screamed in pain as she hit the floor once again. She cried and rolled trying to soothe the aches on her fragile body. "But of course," Devin walked towards her dauntingly, "I suppose you'll only know after tonight."

In Trabia, if you shout out robber, even the police often run the other direction.

In Trabia, if you cry out mugger, people pretend they can't see.

…In Trabia, if you squeal rape, no one hears.

_--_

_A crime, which is the crime of many, none avenge._

_--__Lucan_

--

Sorry short I know, but I'll update really soon.


	14. Chapter 13

_  
__"Tada hoshigatte,"  
__("Simply wanting,")_

_Beautiful World  
__Chapter Thirteen_

Selphie lay like a dead mound of flesh by the fire. Her body concealed by her thin blanket, and most of her clothes stripped and thrown onto the wet ground. Trails of tears cascaded from her eyes in union making the stone by her face darkened and damp. She breathed slowly watching the ceiling not exactly sure how everything happened.

Aches traveled throughout her body, partially from the Devin's **last** act of aggression, and partially from the blows of throwing her body about the room. She grasped her blanket and remained completely still on the cold cement tile in front of the hearth.

Devin and her had shared, without doubt several nights together sexually. This wasn't what occurred and sickened her from every tip of her body. Before, it was pleasure, mainly for Devin, some act of endearment or something along those lines. What he had just committed was anger, vengeance… punishment.

Selphie encountered fear on several occasions. In Trabia, fear was the most common emotion. There was so much to be afraid of, people, animals, and monsters alike. Through all of this, no memory surpassed the fear instilled in Selphie's mind.

The last time Devin took her by surprise like this, she shivered. She shivered night and day in confusion.

Right now Selphie stayed on the ground motionless, as though she were nothing more than a corpse hidden under a blanket. Her fragile hand with thin, spindly fingers curled naturally stretching for a bun in the middle of the room.

'''''''''''''''''

"Attention staff and passengers, we are preparing to stop at Trabia. Please gather your things."

Irvine overheard several boys yawning underneath him. Others were still attempting to understand the junction system. How they still didn't understand it was a mystery to Irvine. The cabin was full of noise as the boys scurried about looking for their bags, groaning they wanted to sleep more, and fighting over a miniscule answer that could be located in the book but were too stubborn to look it up.

A long arm stretched and simply touched the roof of the train cabin. One arm remained behind Irvine's neck as he stared at the ceiling bored and awaiting the boys to evacuate before he climbed off of the bunk. He straightened his legs causing several inches to hang off the end of the mattress.

"Yeah man. Let's go!" The last of boys fled the cabin with their bulky carriers, scooted and wedged through the door and left Irvine alone.

Irvine carefully pinched the edge of his hat and pulled it to reveal his eyes. He raised himself cautiously not wanting to hit the ceiling. His legs swung to the side of the bunk as he let his back slide over the edge until he soundly hit the floor. He grabbed his bag that laid on the bottom edge of his bunk and swung it over his shoulder.

As exited the train he saw the time on a clock hanging over a window. It was nearly midnight. He yawned loudly and stretched his arms over his head. Once his foot stepped out of the train, the cruel cold winds blew sending chills throughout his body. He rubbed his arms over his coat, faced his head down, and kept walking forth.

He heard students murmuring about how early the convention lectures started. They were all anxious to go to the hotel and rest. Irvine, on the other hand, had different plans.

Although he knew it was late, very late, he followed the group until Town Square. He took a turn breaking apart from the other students, passed paradise fountain, pushed through the crowds, and with great strength, he found himself in the quiet neighborhood streets that surrounded the busy town square.

Irvine looked building to building, everyone shabbier than the next. He used all memories to recollect where Selphie lived. His mind was so intent on trying to kiss her that night that it was rather foggy. He passed several streets of shacks, dilapidated buildings, places that would be shamed to call a home.

He'd catch children bundled in assorted, non-matching, ragged clothes passing him rudely and rushing over their splintered porches into their houses. There was a smell of burning wood in the air choking Irvine's lungs. Every home, sturdy or cruddy, had a thin line of smoke released into the gray air above.

As if a light bulb flashing on Irvine recalled the street he stood on, he was near to Selphie. Very near.

His feet ran before him as excitement grew. He made a sharp turn at the next street intersection and ran down through the shabbiest places of all he'd seen. He stopped short a few feet from Selphie's door and smiled.

His lungs burned through the frigid air that he breathed in. He smiled, his lips already so chapped from the dry atmosphere. Giving them one lick, he started proudly and knocked on the door.

"Selphie? Hey Selphie you in there?"

There was no response. Irvine kept knocking. Still no response. Yet again, Irvine knocked. This time, the door unlatched due to its poor structure and Irvine far stronger than it did. It swung open with a creak letting cool air come into the dimmed room.

As Irvine walked in he heard his foot falls splashing, the rims of his pants lining with water. He closed the door behind him and looked at the floor. It illuminated with daunting reflections from the weak fire from the hearth. He kept walking his eyes glued to the floor.

A small light colored rock was in the center of the room. Irvine bent down and picked it up. He brought to his eye level and inspected it closely. In his hand was simple bun, over baked, or frozen. It's bottom was soggy and cold. It only had a bite or two taken from it. Irvine dropped the bun and continued forward still inspecting the ground.

Although eyes on the floor, Irvine overlooked a metal pitcher which he tripped over, causing a loud clatter and splashing.

He heard a loud sigh from the front of the room. His head shot up as he saw the silhouette of a scrawny figure cloaked. It turned his way and spoke in meek voice. "Irvine?"

"Selphie!" Irvine said in far more heartily voice. He leapt to her side.

Closer to her, he saw images he could imagine that would haunt him for the rest of his life. Although Selphie held a blanket about her tightly, he could see her bare skin under it. Bright redness, future bruises, covered every spot he could see. Some blood had dried the color of a dying rose stuck to places on her skin.

Still upon seeing this, as he met eyes with Selphie, she smiled widely. Her eyes still its normal immense green. She threw her arms around Irvine and hugged him tightly. "I'm so glad you're here!" She cried into his chest.

'''''''''''''''''''

It must've been two to three hours since Irvine arrived to Trabia. He still hadn't checked into the hotel and found himself before the hearth of a shabby structure with a bony fragile being's head on his lap fast asleep.

As she slept, there was no smile on her face, simply a look of discomfort. Irvine shifted all he could but her expression remained the same. She threw on rags covering most of the redness Irvine earlier saw.

When he first asked what happened, she said nothing. He argued and pleaded she say what occurred. She hugged him and begged him not to make her say anything. She changed and sat with him in silence, a few moments later she fell asleep on his strong shoulder. Irvine was the one who gently laid her head against his thigh so she could lay straight.

More than ever, Irvine was glad he never slept with Selphie.

He remembered her bony body that looked as though the bones would rip through her skin at the slightest touch. Underneath her layers of clothing, she had a thin face, but nothing more.

Irvine stroked her shoulder and made sure her blanket didn't slip off. The images of the amount of forming bruises on her bare body shook him. He couldn't fall asleep despite the fact exhaustion was slipping on his eyelids.

Selphie didn't say exactly what happened. Irvine, a grown man, knew exactly what occurred. Selphie…violated, ravaged, raped. A mental video of how it must've happened replayed over and over in his head. Helpless, happy Selphie would've been unable to do anything. How could anyone do that? Rape.

A lump appeared in Irvine throat making it impossible to swallow. The idea of a man harming a girl in such a way sickened him. He thought he would vomit. Every time he was with a woman, they would look back on that night hoping it to happen again. He knew that every girl he was with _only_ regretted Irvine's departure in the morning. No more. Here he sat with a victim on his lap.

_She was a prostitute— NO WHO CARES?! You never do that to a girl!_ Irvine rested his head back and groaned. There was no way to make the image disappear. He looked about at the dark shady room. Perhaps a change in scenery would do the trick?

"Selphie?" Irvine murmured in her ear as he shook her shoulder slightly. Selphie turned her head and slowly opened her revealing her emerald eyes that seem to glow in the darkness. "Hey Selphie, let's get out of here."

Selphie looked oddly confused at Irvine. She must've noticed it was nearly three in the morning. "Listen, let's go someplace. I don't care where." He continued starting to get up. Selphie nodded and grabbed her coat from her suitcase and slipped it on.

The night outside, so cold that a single breath made your lungs freezes, treated the two cruelly. After they walked on a few blocks Irvine began regretting terribly he decided to leave Selphie's home. She said nothing, simply walked ever closer to him, her head facing the ground and her body shivering.

Irvine wondered if he could go back to the hotel with Selphie. Garden Faculty didn't supervise at night. His single hotel room still awaited him. Surely, no one would notice if he brought Selphie along with him. Irvine threw an arm around the small girl and led her through the winds towards the hotel.

While pushing through the frigid cold, Irvine shuffled through his pockets trying to locate the key card given while he was on the train. His fingers were like fat stubs, clumsy and unable to bend. Biting his lip and tightening his grip on Selphie, Irvine tried ever more to break through the numbness of his fingers. He felt the cool surface of the plastic card on the very tip of his middle finger. With a sense of victory, a surge of adrenalin came over him as he grasped the card in his palm and pulled it out.

His hand felt as though it were bleeding after he returned it to directly come in the way of the wind. While Irvine's teeth jittered, he looked back to Selphie, who obviously more adapted to weather, silently followed in the same position as she had the entire time.

Once at the hotel, Irvine pushed the door open and dragged Selphie in feeling himself melt in the warmth of the lobby. The relaxing warmth embraced him, as he stayed silent and calm in the front of the doorway.

"Sir, customers only please." A hostess at the counter shrilled.

Irvine, with a shaking hand, pulled his card out for the hostess to see. The lady turned her head and returned to her work as Irvine and Selphie numbly advanced to the elevator across the room.

Once they were in Irvine's room, he had placed Selphie gently on the foot of the bed. She sat still her eyes to the ground rather oblivious to the acknowledgement the entire trip happened. Irvine paced the room before her as he groaned. What did he do now? Where did Selphie go now? Did he have it in him let her stay?

Did he have it in him to take her away from here?

Selphie still sat motionless in the darkness of the room. Irvine sighed and switched the lights on only to reveal Selphie's bobbing head looking at the ground her feet planted themselves. Her hands were holding her coat closed tightly about her small frame.

"Hey," Irvine began. His calm soothing voice had a positive affect on Selphie who turned her head cheerfully and smiled in compliance. "Why don't you wash up?" With a light step, Selphie rose and nodded obediently. She held up a small wave and walked into the bathroom closing the door softly behind her.

Inside, Selphie looked around the cold bathroom solemnly. The tiles felt like ice and although the room was aglow, Selphie shivered. Her hand, still shaking from the cold, hesitantly turned on the faucet for warm water. In Devin's manor, the wait for warm water was never an issue. However, it a rather cheap hotel, it was.

While waiting for the water to warm, Selphie slowly eased her jacket off and pegged it to the towel rack. Her uneven mess of clothing revealed itself, as she looked at herself in the shining clean mirror. She felt places that itched under her layers of cloth. Carefully, she plucked her sweater off already showing her thinness. After her sweater, she stripped several undershirts until she could see her abdomen's skin. About her waist, a bluish stein had erupted. It covered most of her middle, and felt as though someone had thrown a hundred rocks on top of it. Her hand touched it slightly and pulled away as she winced in pain.

_Selphie swallowed slowly and nodded. "I— he was really nice, you might li—" A striking blow in her abdomen cut her off. She fell on the ground and cried out. The clatter of the metal pitcher hitting the floor deafened her as she fell nimbly back on the stone. Her arms grasped her middle as she gasped for breath. This time, she saw Devin moving to the pitcher, picking it up… and thrusting it at her._

She continued pulling off clothing articles until her naked body could be seen in the clear reflection. She used to be concerned because she was so pale, people called it unhealthy. Her new worry was what they would think of her now. Black and blue bruises covered so many places across her legs, arms, and sides. Her cheeks were still red from when Devin slapped her. Itchy irritation infested areas were dried blood had collected, mainly along her thighs.

The water was boiling when Selphie finally ran her hands under the faucet, lifting a handful and clumsily throwing it over her face, not caring how the searing pain felt.

'''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine nearly fell asleep waiting for Selphie to come out. This didn't bother him really, he needed more time to ponder in silence without having to look at Selphie's poor physical condition. He needed to make a rash decision.

He flipped his wallet out deftly and counted the gil inside. He had little left since he gave a large chunk to Rinoa so she could rest. Now he regretted giving it to her when he found himself in a situation with a girl who needed it **so** much more. Also in his wallet, his ticket stub for the train station hid in the corner of a pocket. He still had the stub from his previous trip, plus the one he received earlier that day.

Selphie exited the bathroom soundly. She had replaced all her clothing articles back on. Her face was blooming red, and despite the fact the room was not well lighted, Irvine could see her face almost illuminating with a blushing color. She looked at him and smiled meekly. "Sorry about that," She giggled cutely. Irvine bowed his head kindly and pointed to the lone bed in the room.

"You go ahead and sleep there, I'll take this—" Irvine patted the cheaply upholstered chair he rested on, "this chair."

No response, no argument. Selphie walked to the bed, took of her jacket and placed it at the foot of the bed. She slid under the covers and collapsed to a deep slumber.

--

_There are two ways to slide easily through life; to believe everything or to doubt everything. Both ways save us from thinking._

_--__Alfred Korzybski_

_--_


	15. Chapter 14

"_Nurui namida ga hoo wo tsutau"  
__("Cold tears running down your cheek")_

_Beautiful World  
Chapter Fourteen_

Born with a curse was the ill fortuned, Seifer Almasy. Everyone simply labeled him a trouble child. An angry boy, he most likely had a severe case of lack of anger management. Several rumors to explain his behavior followed him. None of course, which Seifer validated himself.

Simply being misunderstood was Seifer's curse. He wasn't angry, he was just aggressive. Instead of anger, most people usually caught him with a wide smile across his face. Granted these usually were as sly as a fox's smirk, and usually followed a mean taunt from him. He had great physical strength, and often he liked to show it too. This didn't make him a bully so to speak. Seifer's aggressiveness had a good use for one keen reason; Seifer lusted for the power of authority.

He utilized his strength, his attitude, and his undeniable loyalty from his two good friends, Fujin and Rajin, to run an unofficial Disciplinary Committee for Balamb Garden. Most of his actions easily classified themselves to be unorthodox, but since it did dramatically decrease misconduct within the Garden, no faculty or staff member complained.

No one knew for sure if Seifer started the committee for himself and the secret power that everyone in Garden had for him or the servitude of another.

Seifer, contradictory as it was, identified himself as the most loyal fan to Sorceress knight tales. He knew the greatest majority of them by heart, willingly would learn any someone would tell him about, and could mimic any knight's moves almost perfectly. Seifer was one of the few students in Balamb Garden that at young age could pick and skillfully wield a gunblade.

Born in Esthar, Seifer was raised in the global center of Sorceresses. A historical Sorceress ruler, a prominent Sorceress memorial, and the infamous Dr. Odine of magic and sorcery all resided there. During the wars, Seifer experienced first hand the terror of sorceresses. However, Seifer perceived their actions very differently than most.

He believed the Sorceresses would have been ideal rulers for the world. They had ultimate power, they could stop wars, halt or progress Mother Nature's courses, control time, bring death, or embrace life. These, to Seifer's eyes, were not characteristics of enemies but true empresses.

The reign of Adel seemed like the golden age of Esthar to Seifer. Although already orphaned by this time, he kept up with all news of his beloved ruler and loyally promised he would serve her as her knight as soon as he could.

Seifer blamed the Sorceresses' downfall on lack of knighthood.

When Laguna Loire took power in Esthar and sent the orphans of Esthar to Gardens around the world, Seifer still kept in mind that Esthar sheltered young, beautiful Ellone. She was a young Sorceress adopted by President Laguna, and although she most likely could have had anyone in the world be her knight, Seifer deemed it would be he, who would return stronger than ever to protect her.

Fate alone brought Seifer to Balamb Garden. He learned under the watchful, caring eye of a sorceress, Sorceress Edea. His skill at the gunblade defeated all those in Balamb Garden, even graduates, and many thought highly of him. Several believed he would make SeeD at a very young age.

A hopeful future was in Seifer's grasp. Everything seemed set for him… until the day he met his archenemy and nemesis for life, Squall Loire.

Before he met Squall, Seifer was only as troublesome as any other little boy was. He got into quarrels and occasionally didn't listen to his elders, but the idea that Edea was watching him and Ellone awaited him brought him back to loyal behavior. Squall entered his life and broke his focus completely. For this, Seifer hated Squall and became very bitter.

Squall spoke little. He was rather detached, and most found him in the back of the classroom usually mumbling something about his sister. Seifer in the beginning found this incredibly entertaining, and always made jokes about this. Squall never concerned himself to be bothered by Seifer's ridicules. A simple visit from a special person one day shut Seifer's mouth for quite some time.

Sorceress Ellone, the one and only Ellone came to visit Squall! This alone brought envy to every corner of Seifer's young childhood body.

Every student was interested in Ellone's visit and came by to say hello and ask her a question or two. Several asked why she bothered to visit a quiet little boy like Squall. Whenever anyone asks, Ellone would smile and say simply, "Squall is my knight! I missed him."

Ellone's response destroyed Seifer's dream. His one desire he had been training for everyday he lived in Garden suddenly stolen before his very eyes. Later, Seifer learned Squall was the President's real blood son, making Ellone his adopted sister. This connection filled Seifer with jealousy, hate, and animosity towards Squall.

After the one visit that shattered Seifer's short-lived dream, Ellone never returned. No one heard anything of her on the news and the world stopped listening to anything that concerned Sorceresses.

Seifer never felt more alone.

Somehow, he blamed Ellone's disappearance on Squall. It hadn't solved any issues, it certainly did bring out many problems growing up in Garden. Even if Ellone already made her choice for knight, Seifer never released his grudge for Squall. He never stopped suspecting him and was determined to discover where it was she had gone.

For the remainder of his training life, the drive that kept him going since the death of his dream was the one hope to find out where Ellone had gone. Then perhaps he could live in peace and use his skills to do whatever bidding the world called for. This drive gave him amazing strength, and several feared him throughout Garden.

Fear also brought loyalty; this loyalty went by the names of Fujin and Rajin. The two were close friends who understood one another better than anything in the universe. They swore allegiance to Seifer and within a year of their preteen lives, they became a trio that seldom separated.

Besides Fujin and Rajin, no one knew of Seifer's love for Sorceress. No one particularly found the aspects of it that Seifer enjoyed interesting. Girls mainly liked romantic tales and boys usually admired the heroic knights. Very few gave attention to the big focus of the entirety of the subject.

The only girl that seemed to semi understand Seifer, was Rinoa. She believed Seifer's words were powerful and lifted her. They never actually spoke of sorcery again, but just the knowledge that Rinoa accepted that of him kept Seifer content. Rinoa was easy to please and these two combined kept their long lasting relationship.

'''''''''''''''''''

The more Seifer found himself hating Squall, the more involved in his life he seemed to become. In some instances, this irritated him, but today's case intrigued him, as though he'd been waiting for this exact moment.

In class, Instructor Trepe made her responsibility to collaborate up her students into fighting partners. She went one by one and personally assigned two together. When she arrived to Squall in the back of the room, she smiled as said proudly. "I'll put you, Squall, with the only other gunblade specialist in your grade level." She turned her head to Seifer and bowed her head. "Seifer."

That's another thing that irked Seifer, when he first arrived to Garden he was the only child able to use a gunblade until Squall came who could already use it.

His fingers clenched under his study panel as he forged a smile for his attractive instructor. "Oh instructor, I'd be honored that pretty boy will be with me." He darted a mean look to Squall, which sat with his head to the floor. "It'll be **so much** fun, we'll be best buds." Seifer chuckled sarcastically causing Instructor Trepe to sigh and dismiss her class.

Seifer never made practicing sound very appealing to Squall, but he did on several attempts try to ask him.

"Hey loser, wanna go get your ass kicked?"

"Let's go scratch up that pretty face of yours."

"Don't leave me hangin' now, I've been dying to cut you up."

"Come on, you being a pansy on me or something?"

"Pretty boy! Why don't you grab your sword and show me there's more to that face of yours!"

Squall usually shrugged off the hostile invites Seifer made with a good solid, "Whatever"; rarely Squall would actually go train. These brawls were very difficult, mainly because the two realized the competition between them. Their one duel could easily last hours. There was no undefeated-champion of the two of them; in fact, they had never been able to finish a duel once. They'd always need to call it off as a stand off due to a weather condition or lack of time cutting their duel to a close.

Today, Seifer knew it would be different. He refused to leave until victory was his and his alone. Granted, he carried this mindset before all battles.

''''''''''''''''''''''

The two of them hiked in silence towards the mountain miles behind Balamb Garden. For no reasons they'd often make their battles more challenging than they needed to be.

"Alright, the only rule is to stay alive." Seifer said loudly.

Squall shrugged, "Whatever."

The two arrived by the roots of the mountain where the ground was coarse and rocky, chips and boulders would often slip and fall, and the zone was marked dangerous.

Seifer faced the wind and smirked with grandeur. The air was heavy with tension and Squall behind him several feet with his gunblade planted in the ground. Seifer inhaled deeply as though tasting the winds of battle and spun about, gunblade in hand. He held his gunblade single handedly in a horizontal way aiming a perfect shot at Squall's head if the gunblade shot bullets.

"Alright pretty boy," He moved his gunblade to his side and raised a finger, curling it in a taunting way. "Come at me!"

''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine didn't like the prospect of stealing, but it was the only able way he could sneak Selphie and himself out.

During the busiest hour at the station, Irvine shoved Selphie and himself into a train passing off a stub as a ticket. Inside the train while the conductor double checked stubs, he was too preoccupied to notice that both Selphie and Irvine had incorrect dated stubs.

The entire day Selphie hadn't really said anything. Irvine told her once they were leaving, and she seemed hesitant but followed without confrontation. Now the two of them sat in compacted cabin of train squeezed between several Trabians on the bumpy loud ride to Garden.

Selphie gazed out the window the entire time, wide eyed in wonder. The sights of glistening snow looked marvelous over uninhabited fields. Whenever Irvine could catch a glimpse of her, she sat with her hands over he kneecaps gazing at wonder through the glass, humming cheerfully. If he addressed her ever, she'd say, "Wow! Trains are so wonderful, aren't they!?"

Irvine could only smile. In his heart, he couldn't believe Selphie was a prostitute, if not for the bruises across her body he never would believe her a rape victim either. There was no chance of someone so ill fated to be **this** happy.

Was there?

After several hours of driving along in train, it finally arrived to Balamb. The big beautiful ocean awed Selphie. Once the conductor dismissed them, Selphie was the first to find herself out of the train. Irvine pushed and heaved through the crowds trying to recover his small traveling partner. Once out to the station, still busy with now Balamb citizens he looked frantically for Selphie.

"Selphie!" He called out in a panic. He continued to shove through the crowds and pushed his way through. "Selphie where are you!" He scouted through the crevices between people's bodies in hopes to find the small puny brunette. She had such abnormal hair; he'd be able to pick her out no problem.

'''''''''''''''

Selphie didn't intentionally run away from Irvine. In the excitement of new land, she rushed to a clearing. The first she found was immediately outside the station. A hundred years in Trabia would never get as breathtaking sight as what laid before her. The sun shone brightly overhead. The heat almost tingled under her layers of clothing. She stepped on the edge of a board and slowly took off layer by layer.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine rushed in a hurry through the last bustle of people to the clearing of pavilions along the coast of the sea. The city suddenly felt quiet and serene. There was no more commotion, no more upsetting noises. Even though Selphie was still missing, Irvine felt calmer.

The sun made the beautiful lapis lazuli ocean sparkle in angelic light. Irvine smiled as he turned his gaze slowly towards the docks. Stationary vessels swayed in the slight sways of the ocean.

Their captains and maintainers all look unimpressed with them however. They all focused their attention towards a lone dock that had no ship or boat stationed and pegged to it. Instead, a girl with unusually shaped hair stood at the very edge slipping off garments and tossing them to her feet, some slipping into the water.

Irvine rushed to the dock, slowing his pace as he came closer and stopped a few feet behind Selphie. She stopped pulling clothes off once she arrived at a single one-piece suit of what looked like a yellow overall dress. Her arms and legs looked bare say for her skintight leggings and undershirt along with her thick brown snow boots. She sighed inhaling the foreign yet calming ocean breeze.

As she turned around, a content and relaxed smile overcame her face. She spread her arms widely watching Irvine with happy serenity shaping her bright eyes.

"Welcome to Balamb, " Irvine said with a smile.

Selphie nodded, "Thanks," She giggled softly, "It's good to be here."

--

_I am still determined to be cheerful and happy, in whatever situation I may be; for I have also learned from experience that the greater part of our happiness or misery depends upon our dispositions, and not upon our circumstances._

_--__Martha Washington_

--

From this chapter on, Selphie and Irvine are not the only focus, so for all you other couple fans the spotlight is growing wider finally. And if you guys manage to catch any of my grammatical or spelling errors, please point them out to me, I'll be glad to fix them up for future readers.


	16. Chapter 15

"_Iitai koto nanka nai"  
__("There's nothing I want to say")_

_Beautiful World  
__Chapter Fifteen _

The morning had been a cruel one for Rinoa. Her patience had been tried to maximum. She had been sent to the edge of concern, and left to linger in worry.

How dearly she wished it back to morning, earlier that day. Back to where she cozily slept, dreamt, and lay oblivious to the problems of the day. Daily stresses were enough, problems only added, and complete messes threw her off. Unsure of what to do, Rinoa sat helplessly at the foot of her bed.

Her arm rested on her thigh as it propped her head by holding her forehead. Restless strands of hair slipped between her fingers and over her palm. She sighed weakly and closed her eyes.

The day started unusually, but not terribly. A call from Instructor Trepe arrived breaking the peace of Rinoa's dreams and slumber. She called informing Rinoa that Seifer, during training was heavily injured. His partner involved was sent to the infirmary and Seifer too was recommended to go. He refused all services and quarantined himself to his dorm. Instructor Trepe requested that Rinoa check up on him since he truly was injured deeply.

In a panic Rinoa dressed and rushed to Seifer's dorm. She began seeing a trail of blood in spots on the halls all ending at the door of Seifer's dormitory. She banged on his door loudly while screaming, "Seifer! Seifer open the door!"

No reply came. Still Rinoa tried adamantly, jamming the locked door screaming. After her persistence, she rushed to the infirmary to see if he finally reported there. Dr. Kadowaki, the Garden healthcare professional, only griped that Seifer was too proud to come in. Worry gushed from her heart through every artery of her body.

At this Rinoa rushed back to Seifer's room ten times faster, while pounding at doorstep more frantically and louder than ever. "PLEASE SEIFER OPEN THIS DOOR! LET ME IN!" Tears spilt from her eyes as her fists stopped beating against the door. She leaned against it and sobbed, "Seifer, I won't leave till I know you're okay! Please answer me."

Her knees hit the floor, as she remained glued to the locked door. As she continued softly crying, she heard several foot falls come ever closer to her.

"Rinoa," A confident female voice called.

The miserable brunette raised her head and pulled away from the door. She stood slowly while rubbing her white cheeks red. With a small sniff, she bowed her to Headmaster Cid, along with his secretary Xu, and of course Instructor Trepe. Instructor Trepe, who had gotten Rinoa's attention, stood with her legs and arms crossed looking kindly into her eyes.

"Rinoa, it's alright. We'll take care of it." She walked to the door, and knocked once. "Seifer, this is Instructor Trepe. Open this door immediately!" Her stern proud voice echoed throughout the hall. However, it came to no avail.

Xu hurriedly withdrew a key from her pocket and jammed it into the keyhole, with a turn and satisfying click the door came open. Instructor Trepe turned the knob first and walked in without warning. Following her went Xu and Headmaster Cid.

Rinoa stood helplessly outside of the doorway watching the trail of blood painted on the ground grow thicker, fresher, and crimson. A sickness came over her stomach as she watched the blood oozing across the floor.

Instructor Trepe looked about the room, her eyes thinned in discomfort. "What a mess." She clicked her tongue and faced Rinoa watching her dismay and disgust. "Rinoa,"

Immediately the malaise withdrew as Rinoa turned her head back to the instructor. "Yes ma'am?"

"You should go rest; you don't look too well yourself. Don't worry about Seifer, we'll take care of him from here."

Rinoa hesitantly nodded with a gulp and with nervous steps stumbled out of sight. She rushed back to the quietness of her dorm, lay on her bed and sobbed until she otherwise could feel better. Why wouldn't Seifer let her in? How badly was he hurt? Who did it to him? What did he do to get it done to him?

She now rested at the foot of her bed dramatically calmer than before. She breathed in and out steadily still forcing the images of blood from her mind. The matter of bleeding did not disturb her, it was the fact she knew it all derived from Seifer. Where had it come from? Did he lose a limb? Was he still bleeding as she sat here uselessly?

With a great sigh, she fell on her back and closed her eyes. _Oh Seifer… _

''''''''''''''''''''

When Headmaster Cid, Xu, and Instructor Trepe finally found Seifer in his room with several towels partially used and his face still an abhorrent sight, Cid dismissed himself along with Xu and ordered Instructor Trepe to stay and help Seifer since he so stubbornly refused to let Dr. Kadowaki service him.

If Seifer still had the strength, he would have swatted Instructor Trepe away just as hastily as he did the doctor. However, he sat on the floor his head rested against his bed half conscious, while a thick maroon liquid covered his entire face.

Instructor Trepe knelt by him and forced his eyes to meet hers. His eyes partially closed and easily described drowsy. The normal ferocity and might that normally occupied his green irises had temporarily left leaving Seifer in an exhausted state. She released her hold on his head; as a result, his head flopped back on to the bed releasing a small groan. Instructor Trepe stood and crossed her legs and arms. She bent over and sighed.

She grabbed Seifer's arm and began pulling him, motioning him to rise. He limply stood and toppled on the bed. He laid flat on his back, his face still in Instructor Trepe's view. Dried blood edged his sides while fresh blood oozed from his the center. He breathed and exhaled loudly sometimes coughing out blood that slipped between his lips.

She took a seat on the side of his bed, grasped one of the many towels and folded it so the blood hid between the folds. She shifted closer to Seifer's head and patted his cheek. "Seifer," She began ever softly exerting a bit more force to scrub the dried blood.

He opened his eyes to show he was attentive but made no verbal response. Instructor Trepe, still working on the outline of his façade, kept speaking. "Please realize you're not in any trouble." She gazed quickly to his eyes, which had a nonchalant look. She returned her focus to his cheeks now touching the fresher, wet blood trailing from the bridge of his nose. "We're all just very concerned for you." Her voice was steady, firm, calm, and consoling.

"Squall is still unconscious, and look at you. You're really no better." She had lowered her voice to almost a whisper while still concentrating on her work of cleaning up his face. She moistened another bloody towel with summoned water and wiped his cheeks. "Who knows what would've happened," Her voice had become so low, with her realizing that she raised it slightly, "if no one was out there? You could've bled to death. Squall would be the one still alive."

Seifer snorted, despite the amount of blood Instructor Trepe had been clearing off his face, he truly doubted the possibility of bleeding to death. It was only a cut. "It looks deep Seifer, it could be permanent." She observed as she pulled out another towel, folded it to show only the dry side and pressed it against the source of the bleeding.

As she exerted more power, pain surged through Seifer. He jittered slightly but made no other apparent movement. Instructor Trepe released her grip and stood. "There, you don't look like such a monster now." She sighed. "You and Squall both have scars then."

Seifer groaned hearing the name again. Flashes of his face went through his mind. He reminisced Squall falling victim to his blade, falling unconscious, hitting the ground with a loud thud while blood gushed from Seifer's strike over his entire face. A wry smile touched his lips.

"Seifer, can you at least tell me why you harmed Squall so intently?" Instructor Trepe asked, in an almost tired voice.

"If you're **so** concerned about pretty boy, dear instructor, then go visit him and leave me the hell alone." Seifer shifted his head and met eye contact with the instructor who stood hovering over him with her arms and legs crossed.

She pivoted her head moving her golden locks that remained hanging in the air. "I've already checked on him, thank you." She stood straight and observed Seifer from head to toe. "You seem well enough if you can talk and make rude commentary. Rest up, don't over exert yourself." She turned smoothly and with graceful steps left the dorm.

"Over exert myself, the hell is she talking about." Seifer muttered. He attempted to raise his head only to be stopped by an overwhelming amount of dizziness sending him straight back to the comfort of his pillow. He groaned irritably as he seized the towel now stained thoroughly from resting on his injury. He thrust it towards the other side of the room; much to his dismay seeing how his lack of energy made it barely pass the bed. "Damn Squall." He sighed and attempted to roll over; once he failed, he lay still like a cold fish, and began gradually falling asleep.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Instructor Trepe closed the door behind her soundly. Once the satisfying click of the door fully closing sounded, she turned her back to it and continued down the hall. She heard a clamor of footfalls. Before she could turn to see who it was, a familiar voice rang out.

"Instructor, instructor Trepe!" Rinoa called waving her arms over her head. She stopped herself close to Instructor Trepe and breathed in deeply in hopes to catch her breath. Once she had enough to speak, she swallowed deeply and turned to her. "Instructor Trepe, is he okay?"

Unsure of how to reply exactly, Instructor Trepe simply smiled and bowed her head. "He'll be fine Rinoa, if he just rests. His injury will probably leave a scar very much like his fighting partner's. If both of them just listen to what they're told, they'll make recovery within a few days at max." She patted Rinoa gently and continued down the hall.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine watched Selphie run before him. Her feet embraced the smooth road clean from snow or any puddles. The sun soaked her body in light making her seem almost aglow. She twirled in place, ran as fast as she could, halted just to breathe in the Balamb air, and would occasionally look back to Irvine with soft eyes as if to say, "Thank you."

Unlike Selphie, Irvine lived in Balamb for several years. He walked nonchalantly behind her. Once they arrived to the gates of Balamb Garden, Selphie stood in awe.

The towering gargoyles guarding the front iron gates looked down on her. She shied away reminiscing back to the beautiful angels carved on Paradise Fountain. A twinge of guilt twisted within her. She faced Irvine, who remained close behind, and gave him an unsure look. "What am I doing here anyways Irvine? I shouldn't **be** here." She whispered sadly.

Irvine smiled with his surprisingly good looks. He bowed his head and put an arm around Selphie's weak fragile shoulders. "Don't worry about it. I'll take care of you."

Selphie looked into his kind eyes. She lost herself in his pupils almost in a daze. "_I'll take care of you_." All her life she never believed anyone would say those words to her again since Mr. Devin. Mr. Devin was the only man in her life who showed any kindness, any care. However it was the same Mr. Devin who came and...

Who was this mysterious person, who brought light into her dark world of Trabia? Would he end up being like Mr. Devin?

Just as Irvine took a step forward, his grip on Selphie slightly tightened pressing against her many bruises. She gasped loudly and cringed towards the ground. "Selphie!" Irvine said in a panic kneeling by her. The moment he had let go of her of course, Selphie stopped feeling the pain and returned her facial expression to her normal gleeful smile.

"Tee-hee," She jumped back to her feet, "All better!" Irvine glanced at her oddly and laughed. He laughed hard and long to cover so many aspects. Cover the fact that he never usually cared about a girl in pain, covered the fact that he knew well what he had done to make Selphie cringe, and cover the fact he remembered what had happened to her only the night before.

"You're a funny gal, Selphie." He chuckled. Selphie gazed at him innocently as she walked passed her, giving her a motion to follow. Obediently she trotted along behind him changing her pace every so often.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Headmaster Cid had told Instructor Trepe that she needed to report to him promptly after she was done attending to Seifer. After Rinoa left her, content from the answers Instructor Trepe had given her, she remained alone in the hall. She pushed back some locks of golden hair and sighed. Although Seifer most likely was just joshing and attempting to irritate her, she truly **did** want to visit Squall again and see if he was conscious yet.

This morning she would never guess the unusual cause for such a ruckus. Like all mornings, Instructor Quistis Trepe woke promptly at dawn, dressed herself in a laundered, ironed SeeD uniform and would attend to a routine schedule. Being hours ahead of the entire Garden, Quistis would train in the training center, attain herself private reading time in the library and ate her breakfast peacefully without the loud noises of a crowded room or the annoyance of very long food lines.

After all this work was done, she'd go attend to her instructor duties. Most of the time it was actually to report to her class and spend hours teaching and training her students. Mornings such as today when there was no class she'd sit in the silence of her empty classroom grading papers or making lesson plans and lectures.

Her very comfortable and simple routine was crashed when Dr. Kadowaki called saying a few students who went hiking found two of her students near the mountains both very injured. It would be a lie to say she wasn't expecting this call sometime soon. Recently she assigned every student with another to train man to man combat. She almost could predict perfectly what students would end up in trouble or injured. Despite this, she knew they needed the practice and still enforced all her students use their designated partner to practice.

They were all ideally matched based on skill and technique. However, not everyone matched personality wise. She partnered, for example, two girls who both fancied Elm-J atk in opposing magics. However, the two were best friends and she predicted they may hold back on each other. Another pair was her two best fighting students, who pretty much lacked in all other aspects of being a student. They were both gunblade specialists who never held back. The problem was they hated each other with a passion.

As she walked towards the infirmary, she imagined which of two was worse off.

There was a quiet uncooperative person who often hid in the back of the room. Although sullen, his most powerful form of expression came out during battle. He had no battle cry; he simply let his gunblade do the talking for him. Squall Loire… named after the beautiful colors of his irises, a turbulent gray that grew fierce and strong when fighting. Quistis envied the uniqueness of his eyes, shaming her more common blue ones.

If it wasn't Squall who lost the battle, it would be Seifer Almasy. Seifer had an arrogant attitude that Quistis swore must've given him super strength. He truly was gifted with the art of sword fighting. His passion and love for Sorceress Knights drew him to complicated fighting styles that he mimicked from books and movies. Most boys who would attempt that kind action looked incredibly stupid, unskilled, and dumb. Seifer, however, perfectly completed each move of his with ease and poise. Just as he would finish, of course, he would destroy the beautiful picture with a rude comment or arrogant remark that would simply irritate Quistis more.

She entered the infirmary listening to the electric doors slide with a small hiss. Upon entering she saw the curtains of the patient's cot area swaying as she could see a pair of legs lying limply.

"He's alright, Quistis." Dr. Kadowaki said loudly startling Quistis to spin around.

She bowed her head politely and stood straight. "So who is it?"

Dr. Kadowaki picked her plump body off her chair and walked around her desk. She showed Quistis her annoyed look as Quistis began picturing Seifer lying unconscious on the cot. The doctor passed Quistis and pushed the curtain to the area housing the cot. "See for yourself."

Quistis entered the doorway and laid eyes on Squall. He had a bandage wrapped about his head cushioning the back of his skull while a thick padded wad of cotton was taped over his nose covering half his face. He still remained oblivious to the world calmly resting. Quistis heaved a great sigh and smiled at him. "I knew it would be him or Seifer!" She said with a small laugh.

Not joining her in her giggle, Dr. Kadowaki returned to her desk and exhaled loudly. "Speaking of Seifer, he's not too hot either."

Curious, Quistis tore her eyes away from the peaceful image of Squall and took a seat before Dr. Kadowaki. "So what happened exactly?"

"Well I'm not really sure—" Dr. Kadowaki paused to ponder the events of the morning. "Some kid came running in here a while ago in a panic. He and some friends, you see, were hiking near the mountains and they found those two. Squall was already unconscious at the sight, but Seifer was just kind of sitting at a rock. Both of them were a mess!" She halted and shook in a disgusted fashion, "A bit after the kid told me, I got some students to help me drag them both here. A big mess the both of them, bloody as heck! I just cleaned up Squall, and he's here till I release him, but Seifer refused to let me check him. He just pushed me away saying something stupid. I'd check up on him if I were you."

Quistis sighed and pushed her hair behind her ear. Of course Seifer would be problematic about any simple situation. She thought for a moment, what kind of mess did Dr. Kadowaki mean? Working in an instructional ground for combat, she witnessed some terrible sights. The two must've looked plain horrible to make Dr. Kadowaki act so horrified. "How long ago was this?"

"Seifer just left the minute I called you."

With that, she reported to Headmaster Cid that her students were injured, by fighting each other and now both were okay. Rather, she knew one of them were. When Headmaster Cid heard that factor, he ordered her to accompany him to visit Seifer himself. However, after facing the brutal sight he left the matter to Quistis telling her to see him after she was done.

Quistis entered the elevator in the center of the Garden. She stood in the small cylinder and pressed for the top floor. Smoothly and hastily, the room zoomed up its tube and halted shortly at the top floor. A small sounded as the doors whizzed open the Headmaster office for the Headmaster and assistant Headmistress. It was convenient they were married, so they shared the floor rather than splitting it. Half the floor was spent to Garden usage and properly giving work area for Headmaster Cid and Headmistress Edea, more commonly referred to as the Garden matron and lastly the secretary Xu. The other half the floor was the headmasters' living quarters.

Xu had her office set up in the room before the Headmasters' offices. She sat working soundly looking up with the sound of the elevator disturbing her. "Oh Quistis, you done with Seifer?" She asked in a more or less unconcerned voice. Quistis nodded while Xu stood and entered the grand doors leading to the higher offices. She returned a moment later giving Quistis the 'ok' to see the Headmaster.

Headmaster Cid sat proudly on his grand chair, extravagantly decorated and adorned. Quistis stood before him and saluted with respect.

"So, what exactly happened with Mr. Almasy?" He asked pushing aside his last piece of paperwork.

"Well, he didn't exactly say anything to me. But as usual," She crossed her arms and legs, "He's upset with Squall if that's anything important." She shook her head gently. She lifted her forearm outward and shrugged, "Why, I'll never understand that boy."

Headmaster Cid perked his head up excitedly as the last words slipped between Quistis' lips. "That's it Quistis!" He said happily. Quistis gave him an odd look and raised an eyebrow.

"What's **it** sir?"

"You're onto something here. Seifer has some hidden issues causing him to act this way. With some anger management and therapy I'm sure he'll be so much better off!" The headmaster smiled joyfully plotting the plan in his head.

"Anger management? Seifer isn't the kind of person who would attend something like that. As for therapy, who in their right mind would spend hour sessions with him? That egocentric person is as stubborn as they come, and he makes it well known! Good luck finding someone." Quistis laughed bitterly.

"Oh don't worry Quistis, I already have someone in mind." Cid continued slowly letting his plan finalize in his mind.

"Really?" Quistis turned to him appalled, "Who is it? Let me meet this person. I would bow down to anyone patient enough to deal with Seifer."

Headmaster Cid looked to her and smiled. His eyes twinkled almost mischievously over his weary bags and wrinkles. He chuckled slightly, "Well go bow to a mirror than, it's you!"

As though someone had shot her directly in the stomach, Quistis gasped and took a step back, shocked. Her head spun as she shot a dirty look of anger to Headmaster Cid. "I—" She began with bitter resentment in the back of her throat, "refuse to do anything of the like!"

The headmaster sighed nonchalantly and almost sarcastically, "I thought you'd say no. Well you should consider it. I was going to give you a raise in your paycheck."

"Forget it!" She snapped crossing her arms and turning away with a sharp shoulder.

"Very well, then you're demoted."

Quistis turned around, shocked, but dramatically calmer. She stepped hesitantly towards the Headmaster, "What do you mean… **demoted**?" The word passed through slowly and uncomfortably like a sticky sap holding her mouth shut.

"Common word dear, demoted. We'd revoke your license and let you return to being just SeeD. You shouldn't miss it too much; you've only been one for a year."

Quistis thinned her eyes crossly. She breathed in and out loudly restraining herself from saying anything out of her place. She turned sharply on her heels and stomped out causing as much noise as she could. "FINE I'LL DO IT! BUT I STILL GET A RAISE!" she shouted as she shut the doors behind her.

Headmaster Cid laughed as he watched the door fall closed behind her. "Oh Quistis, you know I'd never do something so rash."

--

_No matter what we have come through, or how many perils we have safely passed, or how many imperfect and jagged - in some places perhaps irreparably - our life has been, we cannot in our heart of hearts imagine how it could have been different. As we look back on it, it slips in behind us in orderly array, and, with all its mistakes, acquires a sort of eternal fitness, and even, at times, of poetic glamour._

_--__Randolph Silliman Bourne_

_--_


	17. Chapter 16

"_Iitai koto ienai"  
__("Unable to say what I want to say")_

_  
Beautiful World  
Chapter Sixteen_

After hastening passed the cranky gatekeeper Irvine swept Selphie passed the main entrance half full of peering curious eyes.

Irvine hadn't exactly thought the entire plan out, but rather he only hoped that his cheerful optimism would allow everything to fall into place. He led Selphie with a comfortable grip on her wrist leading her through the beautiful structure of Garden.

While Irvine pulled her along, Selphie kept her eyes over the surroundings around her. From this point in her life, the only beautiful building she'd ever entered was Mr. Devin's manor. Although that estate was still a glorified building in her mind, the calm serene ambience of the Garden lifted Selphie as she shifted her focus to try to keep every image in her memory.

After entering through the gate, a wide entrance led to a grand aortic elevator surrounded by a moat with cerulean water and small fountains. The multi-colored halls splitting from the entrance curved away in a circular motion. Glossy tiles covered the floor with while swaying colorful designs adorned the walls. Remembering how beautiful the building looked from the outside, Selphie didn't imagine how wonderful it was within its walls.

Irvine's appearance in Garden, clasped hands with a new girl, didn't come off as shocking to anyone. No students gave him any odd looks and the only person who showed any care whosoever was the gate watcher. The man, Irvine supposed, was senile anyways.

Inside the busy yet quiet Garden, Irvine scurried his petite friend up the stairs. Selphie, who had been holding Irvine's hand grasped even tighter as they ascended. No one paid any mind to the two as they entered the elevator soundly and disappeared to the top floor.

While Selphie stood amazed and thrown aback by the compact contraption Irvine shifted uncomfortably. He didn't exactly plan how this was supposed to happen. Rather, he only hoped everything would just fall into place.

The elevator came to an abrupt stop shaking the small capsule. Selphie's clumsiness succumbed as she fell forward. As she nimbly fell to her knees, she felt warmth along her arms holding tightly. She stared helplessly upward to watch Irvine's kind gazing eyes upon her.

The cerulean orbs had her dazed in a peace she found when she first smelt the ocean breeze of the ocean. It gave an excitement that made her feel light and weightless. Suddenly, she felt hot, warmth on her cheeks as she turned a budding rose color.

"Careful there," Irvine laughed as he continued holding his support out while Selphie reached her feet. Once her soles comfortably hit the ground, she jumped in place and nodded in a certain "Okay go" way.

With a small beep, the elevator doors whizzed open with a gush of air-conditioned air rushing towards them. Irvine stepped out casually while Selphie followed close behind in a far more meek fashion. They entered a burgundy room with golden insignias along the walls. There were double doors that shined bright light from its two elegant windows. Before this, however, sat a desk with a brown hair young lady with a kind yet stern face. She faced them slowly with a confused and blank stare.

"Irvine? What're you doing here? The Headmaster doesn't have any appointment with you." Her absolute demanding bluntness took the two aback.

Irvine chuckled kindly and rubbed the back of his neck. "Aw Xu, pull me a string or two. This is like— really important!" He winked flirtatiously.

Xu, one of Irvine's many heartbreak victims gave a contradictory response to what Irvine anticipated. She shook her head crossly and turned away. "I'm not doing **you** any favors."

"But Xu—" Irvine began earnestly.

"No means no Irvine! Now scat, the Headmaster is really busy." She said almost hissing by the end of her sentence.

A disappointed look consumed Irvine's handsome face as he hung his head. He remained motionless hopelessly in a plot to gain Xu's guilt. Xu, however, sat behind her desk filing papers not giving Irvine a second glance.

"What's going on here?" A melodic voice echoed in the room.

Selphie seemingly was the first to hear it. She spun her head side to side to find the origin of the soft almost musical voice. From one end of the room, a woman glided in gracefully as a swan landing into a lake. Her hair was black as the calming summer night and her clothes reflected it contrasting against her porcelain white skin.

As she fluttered in the room with grace and elegance a whiff of floral perfume filled the air. Selphie inhaled a gulp of air taking in its sweetness. The woman came to a halt a few feet from Selphie and Irvine and smiled a small grin. She gently let her head bow shifting her shiny hair that shamed silk in texture. "Now what is all this then?"

"Headmistress Edea!" Xu exclaimed standing up instantly in respect.

"Xu? Why is there such a commotion? I was awoken from my afternoon rest." Edea said softly in a curious voice with no hint of anger or irritation.

"It's Irvine here, miss. He wants to see the Headmaster but he has no appointment and the headmaster is certainly too busy to take in random students right now." Xu explained anxiously lowering her head apologetically.

Edea smiled a little bit wider and turned her attention to Irvine and Selphie. "Well allow me to assist the problem then, shall I?" She stepped closer to the two.

Selphie found herself completely mesmerized by Edea. Her face was the definition of beauty. Her face was white as snow, with large dark eyes that sparkled without any extra light reflecting off it. She had a small petite mouth with lips colored of red rose. Her sassy eyelashes batted as if it were swaying grass blades in the wind.

"Irvine, may I ask who your friend is?" She averted her attention strictly to Selphie who immediately stepped back and blushed. "I don't believe I've seen you here my dear. Please don't be shy," She reached her hand out caringly, "I'm the Assistant Headmistress Edea Kramer. No one here of course calls me that." She released a rhythmic giggle.

"That's exactly what I wanted to talk to Headmaster Cid about Matron! But Xu here is being such a prick." Irvine sneered at Xu as he came close to whining.

Edea clasped her long delicate fingers together and nodded. "Well, lest we not bother my husband. He is busy. Come with me, my dear. What is your name?"

The feeling of apprehension washed away as Edea smiled. Selphie leapt forward and grinned happily right back. "Tee-hee," she laughed in rejoice, "I'm Selphie, Selphie Tilmitt."

A small bow from Edea followed, "Welcome my dear, to Balamb Garden. Please call me Matron."

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

"So to conclude, it's the Headmaster's wishes… no **orders** we meet here daily for two hours, class day or not. If you don't like that, sadly for you I just don't care. I will honor his orders and I am here. That being said, go ahead and pour your heart of angst out."

Seifer raised an eyebrow to his instructor sitting apprehensively behind her desk. She hadn't looked him in the eye since she told him to sit. The past 10 minutes had been spent prattling about why she was here and how she utterly despised the very idea, and of course how it wasn't her choice.

"Go on, Mr. Almasy." She said calmly finally raising her view to her student.

It wasn't as though Quistis envisioned Seifer's inner feelings to leap out at her suddenly but she certainly wasn't expecting this much apathy. Most people would love it if she was to spend time with them to hear **their **problems. Well, she had a group of Trepies who would anyways.

Without a care of whatever Quistis had just requested for, Seifer kicked back in his seat and titled the chair on its back two legs groaning. "That means I've got to sit here and waste my time for two hours a day?" He let the chair land loudly clattering against the tiled floor. "What kind of crap is this?"

"Like I said, I have really no say to change the situation. Both of us are just going to have to put up with it the same." Quistis sighed relaxing her straight posture and leaning back into her large chair. "Why don't we just attempt to make use of this time Mr. Almasy."

"Why the hell are you calling me Mr. Almasy?" Seifer snapped.

Quistis cleared her throat and gave Seifer a stern look, "For these sessions I will not consider you my student, and you will not consider me your instructor. I will then call you whatever I deem appropriate. You may do the same, Mr. Almasy."

"Alright," Seifer said slyly pushing his chair back on its four legs. "Quistis then?"

A small twitch on Quistis' arched eyebrow flicked as she calmly replied, "Never mind, Seifer you wanted? Seifer it is."

A hearty chuckle escaped Seifer, "Oh who are you kidding? You don't give a crap about this. Don't worry, I don't either. I'm takin' off." He stood up, brushed off his long gray trench coat and turned to leave.

Quistis fell into a mental panic; she had to contain control of the situation. There was little leverage to hold Seifer to, but she had to attempt whatever method necessary. She refused to accept defeat against the stubborn Seifer Almasy. "You take one step out that door before the two hours end Seifer—"

Her voice trailed off as she watched Seifer halt at the door and give her a daring look. His facial expression almost shouted 'what're you really going to do?' Quistis bowed her head, crossed her arms, and continued. "One step out of those doors before I give the say so and I will fail you from my course. You can't be a SeeD ever with a failed class."

"Damnit." Seifer grunted with a dirty look. He turned to her and dragged himself to sit at the chair in front of her desk again. "Fine, what the hell do you want?"

A victorious smile painted across Quistis' white and flawless face. She titled her head and said sweetly, "Well, we'll begin simply." A slight feeling of agitation slipped through Quistis' mind, "Why exactly are you upset with Squall?"

"Who said I was?" Seifer replied nonchalantly as he let a sly smiled come across his face. His green eyes twinkled mischievously in the light of the room as he could see himself perfectly in the blue reflection of his instructor's infuriated eyes.

"Alright," She said holding back a loud rant in the back of her throat, "What makes you … upset?"

"Oh, like angry? Well let's see, you, the headmaster, exams, grades, little kids, chicken wuss, cafeteria lines, cafeteria foods—"

"Seifer!" Quistis called out shrilly as she stood from her chair. "You know very well why you are here, and by Hyne you will cooperate. Today, however, you're lucky because I'm already exhausted."

"It's Saturday—" Seifer said dully.

"ENOUGH! Just," Quistis breathed in to calm herself, "just go Seifer."

'''''''''''''''''

Edea's office was much smaller than Headmaster Cid's was, mainly for the reason she seldom spent time in the office. The room did however, comfortably held the three occupants.

"So you arrived here with Irvine?" Edea asked Selphie in curious tone. Selphie nodded with some hesitance as she face Irvine, her eyes desperate for aide.

Clearly, someone didn't want to finish their own story. A grin touched the handsome white face as Irvine took a step towards Edea. "Well you see matron, Selphie comes from Trabia."

"Trabia Garden?" Edea said immediately attempting to finish Irvine's sentence. She smiled gleefully to Selphie and bowed her head, "You're a transfer student right?"

Irvine rubbed the back of his neck and chuckled, "Eh not exactly." Edea peered at Irvine curiously. A lump caught in the back of Irvine's throat aided failure to find the right words for the situation. Selphie could feel the hesitance as though it was a thick cloud in the room. She looked earnestly to the two as they shared an awkward silence.

"Well Irvine?" Edea asked, not sternly nor with any anger, simply asking calmly.

"I used to live on the streets!"

The abrupt blurt broke the staring contest between Edea and Irvine. The two of them looked back to Selphie both with very different expressions. Irvine looked as though his entire purpose had come crashing down. Edea on the other hand, had a growing smile on her white face. She glided to Selphie and clasped her soft cool hands to her cheeks.

"Oh my dear! Why did you not just say so? Precious dear, how terrible!" Her voice was sweet as cream as Selphie felt so comforted and safe by the stranger's words. Her eyes went hand in hand with her melodic words. Crystal tears formed in Edea large dark eyes and a few already escaped onto her sweeping eyelashes. "Don't you worry yourself," She said softer, "Your matron shall take care of everything."

'''''''''''''''''''''''''

Rinoa hadn't spoken to Seifer much recently. Since his incident the other day, he had come very close to avoiding her completely. Persistent Rinoa didn't settle for that of course. The first thing that morning she headed straight for Seifer's room.

Right then, she saw firsthand the effects of the battle he participated in the day before. A blood maroon scar started between his eyebrows and ran diagonally underneath his left eye. Still fresh from impact, it would still occasionally open and bleed

"Stop staring at it Rinoa!" Seifer snapped when Rinoa's large brown eye fixated on the centerpiece of his face.

"I-I can't!" Came the helpless reply. Rinoa hung her head sadly to force her view away from Seifer. "Oh Seifer, who did this to you?" She snapped her head up eagerly, "Tell me who!"

Seifer passively ignored her stepping easily passed. Shocked by his cold response, Rinoa stubbornly kept repeating her plea, "Tell me who did it Seifer!" She didn't chase after him, but merely stood in place as her boyfriend left her to wallow and completely ignore her.

From that event of the morning Rinoa had been tense all day, not only did she see what happened to Seifer, he was ignoring her! Normally Rinoa would go to her favorite person and rant to her heart's content, however Irvine to her knowledge had yet not arrived from Trabia.

To ease her mind, Rinoa thought some quiet study time in the library would relax her nerves. Amongst the shelves and shelves of books she found herself immersed in dozens of other thoughts that she'd always forget her own. Rinoa groaned to herself of her terrible morning keeping her eyes glued to the glossy floor beneath her feet and kept her heavy textbooks close to her chest.

Since she hadn't arrived to the library quite yet, her mind swirled in self-pity and her own problems. It barely occurred to her that she was in the living world, that students passed her, and one of them bumped right into her.

The sudden force pushed Rinoa straight to the hard ground while her books went flying through air until they landed with a loud bang echoing through the hall.

Fuming, Rinoa shot her head up to the perpetrator that dare came in her way. As the furiousness boiled ceaselessly in her chest, her eyes fell upon an interesting insignia. It was vaguely familiar, and felt as though it was déjà vu. Starting underneath one eye and diagonally across his nose to the other eye brightly shown against creamy white skin was a maroon scar.

The student looked at her curiously and didn't even bother to pick her up or her belongings. He simply looked at her with a blank, nonchalant stare.

Rinoa leapt to her feet and leaned in closer to the student's face. She inspected his scar running her eyes over it several times. The rest of his face had yet to occur to her. The color and texture showed it too was a fresh cut.

"You!" She gasped. The student made no response whatsoever as Rinoa stood in interrogation. "How'd you get that scar!" She continued.

The student folded his arms and looked away, "What're you talking about?" He said in a stoic bland voice.

"Your scar," Rinoa ran a finger across her own face to draw an imaginary picture, "I want to know how you got it." Impatiently, Rinoa waited for the student to turn his attention back to her. As he brought his face to meet hers, Rinoa finally acknowledged what the student looked like.

Silky brown hair sat messily on his head in an I-barely-brush-it way. He had a small sharp shaped nose adding affect to a very stern look. His eyebrows arched inward with judgmental eyes. His eyes however, had Rinoa mystified. She had never before come across such an unusual color of irises. They reminded her of the look clouds have before a heavy thunderstorm, the color of full spinning tornado, or even the shine of metal from a piercing sword.

"Whatever."

Rinoa blinked several times returning to the current situation. "What'd you say?"

The student shook his head irritated, "Nothing."

"Okay fine, I don't really care. I just asked you a simple question." She looked earnestly into his mysterious gray eyes, "How'd you get that scar?"The student blatantly ignored her as he shuffled passed her. Rinoa stood aghast as his footsteps echoed loudly and slowly through the hall. She spun sharply on her heels with a scowl on her excited face.

"You're amazing!" She said in an infuriated tone. To her comment, the student gave a nod to show he heard her but gave no emotional response. Raising an eyebrow with curiosity, Rinoa attempted another trick. She leapt in front of him and bent her knees allowing her head to directly under his. The student looked down at her as she gazed upward meeting eye to eye.

"So are you going to tell me or what?" She asked frankly.

"I don't get it, what do you want to know?" The student replied still monotone and blank.

"Simple," Rinoa returned to an upright position and crossed her arms. She tilted her head to appear interrogative, "I just want to know how you got that scar." Slowly, she raised her index finger and almost touched the center of the stranger's face.

Immediately, the student dodged her slow finger and groaned, "It's none of your business." His tone had gone from emotionless to irritable.

"Yes it is!" Rinoa shouted, also irritated.

The stranger continued to ignore her. Rinoa threw her arms to her side and squinted her large brown eyes. "You can try to ignore me, but I promise you, it won't last long!" With that, Rinoa stomped after him.

''''''''''''''''''

Matron dismissed Irvine earlier after she informed him that Selphie would take special classes with her and her only. Edea had sworn herself to Selphie as a private instructor that would bring Selphie to speed; by the next year, she would be able to join the proper age class.

Selphie, already eager with anticipation to learn, felt completely safe in Matron's caring hands. When Edea sent Irvine away, she didn't mind the absence of the only man she knew in Balamb, but rather felt herself secure with this angel.

Edea spent the entire morning planning a perfect schedule with Selphie. Her class hours were a bit longer than the normal students, and she received no holidays unless specially told. Spending her whole life without proper schooling, Selphie was in no position to be asking for vacation time anyways. She agreed and let Matron make any decision she desired.

After they planned a schedule, she assigned Selphie a dorm room and scurried around to find a uniform for her. This final piece of the puzzle was by the far the most difficult for Edea. The clothes Selphie already wore were loose and seem to hang off her. All the uniforms that Balamb carried were suited for young students yes, but bony scrawny women were not amongst that criterion.

Edea surrendered at the smallest uniform she found which was close to the size of junior classman. The suit fit improperly around Selphie's small body, but at least stayed on her limbs rather than slipping off. Edea never became aware of Selphie's injuries for Selphie kept her skintight leggings on.

"You'll be warm in those dearest. Weather is much warmer here by the sea than in Trabia." Edea said kindly.

Selphie tilted her head sweetly and smiled. "Tee-hee, I think I'll be okay." She danced tip-toe-to-tip-toe as she viewed herself in the mirror of the room. Her new black boots, navy skirt, and matching navy shirt were unflattering on her, but regardless Selphie never felt more proud. Tears of joy filled her eyes as the mental title of "First Uniform" went through her mind.

"Well if you tell Irvine your dormitory room number, I'm sure he'll be only too glad to take you there. Is there anything you'd like me to do though?" Edea asked concerned as she cautiously approached the dancing Selphie.

"Oh no!" Selphie shook her head. "You've done so much already! Really! I'll be okay, I'll just go find Irvine." She bowed her head clumsily and smiled widely as she waved goodbye and headed out the door. "Thanks again! I'll see you tomorrow!"

'''''''''''''''''''''

"Well, looks like I win again." A sly smile touched Irvine's thin lips. He flashed his teeth charmingly at a brunette who had been blushing madly. Her twin sister beside her gave her an awkward stare.

"I can't believe you lost! He's such a push over," She said bitterly still observing her sibling making a fool of herself.

Irvine stood straight, swept the cards on the directory's flat panel, and stacked them neatly. "A deal's a deal right?" He formed a fan from his stack and winked at the blushing girl. "You promised me a date if I beat the mighty Diamond of the CC group, and defeated you are."

"Well, I guess you won." The girl said shyly, "I'll see you tonight?" She pushed some hair behind her ear and look to her feet bashfully. Irvine reached his long neck and brought his lips close to her ear.

"I wouldn't miss it for the world," He purred in a voice only she could hear. The girl's eyes went wide as she smiled widely. Before she could speak, her twin pushed her and left leaving Irvine with an angry scowl for stealing her favorite companion for the night.

Irvine leaned against the Garden Directory and laughed softly as the two turned around the round hallway. "Oh yeah, never gets old with the CC group. If only they had more girls." He turned his attention to the main stairwell leading to the only elevator in Garden. He'd been waiting hours for Selphie to descend the stairs, but had yet to see her. Meanwhile he'd been occupying the Diamond Duo's hang-out place. To kill sometime and make plans for later as he chose whichever of the diamonds he thought prettier (despite their identical DNA he still preferred one over the other). With all his spare time, he easily charmed and captivated the twin of his choice.

They ended on a small bet, they'd play a game of Triple Triad and if Irvine won he received a date with her. Irvine was terrible at cards and carried them around only for the reason that this method worked once before with Xu the CC group Queen. The twin was so caught up in Irvine charms and flirts and wanted to continue to the date so much that they threw the idea of pride out the window and surrendered their card game without a fight.

The Diamond twin already passed over Irvine's memory as he returned to wondering about Selphie. What in Hyne's name was taking so long with Edea? Surely they should be done by now. As the thought flashed through his mind, the elevator doors zoomed open with a small beep and Selphie exited. Irvine watched in awe as she approached the first stair.

Her clothes hung loosely off her but tastefully. Despite her bird legs, and small figure draped in clothes that improperly fit, the smile Selphie shined as she met eyes with Irvine melted the poor image of her scrawniness. They glimmered like emeralds in water, as they seemed relaxed and content.

Selphie took a step on the first descending stair, immediately the loose boot she wore took effect and the small Selphie went toppling down the stairs.

All the students stood in awe watching her yelp as she cascaded down. Irvine, however, hastily sped up the stairs and with deft arms halted her a third down the stairwell. Irvine looked at her concerned. Her eyes were shut tightly. "Selphie?" He asked loudly.

Cautiously, Selphie opened an eye. The shining emeralds reappeared as she smiled upon seeing Irvine. "Oh hi Irvine." She said cutely as she straightened in Irvine's arms. "How do I look in my new uniform?"

Irvine chuckled his charming laugh and lifted Selphie easily to her feet. "You look great."

''''''''''''''''''''''

"Aren't you great! Someone just wants a simple answer and you're just— just being a jerk!" Rinoa shouted, still intently following the stranger with the scar.

"Leave me alone, please." He groaned as he slapped his forehead. "What'll make you go away?"

Rinoa smiled and crossed her arms in a matter-of-fact sort of way, "I'm so glad you asked! Well it's simple really, just tell me how got that scar."

"DAMNIT GO AWAY!" He shouted now hitting the anger point. He quickened his pace and rushed down a green colored hall. Rinoa bit her lip, but still followed loyally and kept pestering him with the repetition of her demand.

The stranger came to a halt at the front of the Training Center. He turned around and stared blankly at Rinoa. The two stood in silence for a mere moment.

Rinoa came to the realization that he was silently sending a message. She jerked and looked side to side. "Did you get your scar in here?" She asked sincerely still looking closely for something that may have caused it.

"If I say yes, will you go away?"

Sighing softly, Rinoa looked back and focused her attention to the frank face. "Only if it's the truth." She pressed her weight on her toes and leaned closer to the stranger's face, "Is this the truth?"

"If I say it is, will you go away?"

Rinoa groaned and knelt on the ground, defeated. She hugged her knees looked miserably at the ground. She knew she failed at finding the person who scarred Seifer, and now she wasted an entire morning chasing a random student. Still lost in her own thoughts, Rinoa barely noticed the shadow of the student hadn't budged.

She quickly turned her attention to him in shock. "Well, I gave up. What are you still doing here?"

The student crossed his arms and looked away, "I thought you were going to go off again."

With a grand smile on her face, Rinoa clasped her hands together loudly and jumped back to her feet. Her head bowed slightly as she eye the student carefully. "You want to tell me, don't you?" Her words dripped with excitement as she intently focused on the student's gray eyes. He made no positive response. Instead, he turned around and headed towards the gates of the Training Center.

"FINE!" Rinoa called after him, "can I at least know your name?"

The stranger stopped at the open gates and turned his head only revealing a profile image to Rinoa. "It's Squall." He mumbled softly, with that, he entered the Training Center without another word.

Rinoa smiled to herself, _Squall…_

--

_Say what you want, and do what you want.  
__For those who mind, don't matter and those who matter, don't mind._

_--Dr. Suess_

--


	18. Chapter 17

"_Kanjyou nashi kamoshirenai"  
__("Perhaps lacking any guts")_

_Beautiful World  
__Chapter Seventeen_

Irvine and Selphie walked side by side in the long circular hall with several branches coming from it. "Hey Irvine?" Selphie asked quietly. Without a concern, Irvine turned his head coolly to his small friend and smiled his handsome smile as a response. "Could you help me find this dorm?" Selphie a small slip of paper with neat handwriting on it.

Carefully Irvine gripped the slip with his long fingers and pulled it from Selphie. He read the clean handwriting and recited it aloud, "Dorm 247, roommate Rinoa Caraway." He smiled even wider upon finishing the words. "You know Selphie?"

Nodding happily Selphie gave Irvine her undivided attention, "Yeah?"

"Not that it really matters or anything, Rinoa is my best friend. I know this dorm better than the handle of my gun."

Selphie gave Irvine an odd look not quite understanding the analogy. Without noticing Irvine whistled along chirpily as Selphie tried to make sense of his previous words. She bit her lower lips and concentrated hard.

"You're lucky, Rin is the best. She's super smart so she can tutor you anytime."

Losing her train of thought, Selphie shot her head up. "Tutor?"

"Yeah, like a mini-teacher."

"Really!?"

"Totally, Rinoa **loves** showing off how smart she is."

The two continued to walk in silence allowing the white noise to fill the gaps of conversation. It wasn't an awkward moment, Selphie was enwrapped by the sights of Garden she now was viewing. The colorful halls, the smiling students, all factors brought a new face of excitement. Irvine got his entertainment from watching her face glow and illuminate in wonder.

A hard snapping of shoes halted Selphie from her constant sightseeing as she faced forward. A young lady most likely Selphie's age came before them causing them to stop in place.

"Hi Irvine." Her voice sounds like song of a siren, melodic in an eerie way. She smiled with her thin lips painted a bright shade of blood red. It contrasted well against her face that was as white as the cold snow of Trabia. Her irises, they seemed like a color of light brown at first sight, but when carefully looked at out they actually flickered red.

"Scarlet," Irvine replied comfortably. He returned her seducing smile with his own gentleman's bow. He slid his hat between his two fingers, brought it over his chest, and leaned his head in. "You look good."

A laugh escaped her smooth lips as she tossed her head of curly locks. Her hair was black, so black it even shined black. It'd easily shame the feathers of a raven. She turned her fiery colored eyes to Selphie. "And this is Irvine Kinneas' number 278th?"

"Keeping count are ya?" Irvine said as he straightened up. He put an arm around Selphie and arched an eyebrow. "And no, Selphie's a friend of mine."

"Just a guess then," Scarlet batted her long vixen like eyelashes and came close to Irvine. "Personally, I wouldn't mind settling for 278." She whispered softly into Irvine's ear and gave him a long look.

"You're not that lucky Scarlet." Irvine replied haughtily.

A wry grin touched Scarlet's lips as she released a small laugh to shrug off Irvine's rejection. She batted away and twinkled her fingers as wave as she continued to walk slowly and adoringly down the hall, one foot carefully before the other.

"Who's that?" Selphie asked innocently, "Your girlfriend?"

Irvine released the grip he had on Selphie's shoulder and smiled in a friendly matter. "Hah, she wishes. And so does all Garden, though." He said slowly.

"Wow!" Selphie jumped in place, "You're really that liked around here! That's sooo cool."

"Heh," Irvine rubbed the back of his neck, "I meant Scarlet actually. All the guys around here love her, and she shows it back to them too." His words came slowly as his eyes still wandered in the direction Scarlet had trotted.

"You know," Selphie began quietly, "she sort of reminds of the girls back home. The ones at the fountain. Some of them were so pretty, just like her. They talked and laughed like her too."

"Whores all start to sound the same." Irvine uttered under his breath. Selphie made a sound as if to comment, "What'd you say?" Irvine coughed and turned his attention back to her. He shook his head and laughed. "I just said that she's probably not too different from those women."

Selphie kept staring at Irvine, now in shock. "You mean, you guys have a fountain here too?

Irvine laughed, "No it's not quite like that. What she does is for fun, not money." As the words left him, he starred guiltily at the floor.

''''''''''''''''''''

"Squall!" Rinoa called after the brown hair student.

"I thought you were going to leave me alone." He called loudly letting his voice echo in the empty green hall. Gently he halted and turned around watching Rinoa run after him. She stopped gracefully and smiled at him.

"Nope! I've only just started." She clasped her hands together while her eyes glimmered with determination. Squall gave her an irritated look and changed his destination back out of the green hall. Rinoa looked confused, "Don't want to train anymore?"

"I only went that way cause' I thought it'd get rid of you." He replied bluntly.

"That's not very nice," Rinoa sighed as the returned the bright center of the Garden. "You know, it's really easy to get rid of me. Just answer my simple questions."

Squall halted, "Questions? You have more now?"

Rinoa's eyes widened as Squall faced her. She cupped her mouth and laughed hard, so hard she clutched her stomach. Squall said nothing; he only looked at her curiously unsure of what had occurred for her to go off tangent. She raised her head and muffled the rest of her chuckles. "Sorry, it's just you sounded so funny right then."

"I wasn't trying to be," Squall said as he shrugged.

"I bet you weren't, you didn't sound it." Rinoa lowered her gaze to the floor as she bit her lip, "Sorry I wasn't trying to offend you."

"Forget about it." Squall shook his hand at her and continued down the hall. Rinoa ran behind him and smiled.

Coming from around the curve of the circular hall came Scarlet. Her uniform too tight and the heels of her boots thin and noisy came her in a loud way. Behind her a few male students stared, mouths agape. As more eyes fell, the wider her siren smile became.

"Squall!" She said in a wickedly sweet voice. She waved her thin arm and rushed over casting one look at Rinoa only a foot behind. "Oh Rinoa, didn't see you there."

"Hello Scarlet." Rinoa said bored.

Scarlet brushed away Rinoa's lack of interest and turned back to Squall. "So Squall, heard you'll be the squad leader Instructor Trepe chooses." Her smiled became thinner, "that's such a turn on."

Squall had a blank gaze and showed no emotion at Scarlet's apparent flirting. To this Scarlet simple laughed and turned to walk off, "I'm like fire and you're like ash Squall. We'd do great things together." As she made way to leave, she glanced once more at Rinoa. She arched an eyebrow, "Didn't know you were after him too, Rinoa."

Rinoa cocked her head back and scowled, "I'm not! I have a boyfriend thanks!" She snapped.

"That's right," Scarlet crossed her arms sassily, "what's his name… Setzer or something."

"Seifer! Get it right!" Rinoa said bitterly.

Scarlet tossed her hair side to side, "Oh that's right." She said smoothly. "The really hot one."

"Yep that's him." Rinoa beamed with pride watching Scarlet give a face of distaste. In response, Scarlet scoffed.

"Oh I meant hot-headed sweetie." She gave one last look of arrogance and trotted off with loud heels making echoes in the halls. Rinoa stared grimly as her figure became smaller and smaller into the distance. She became so fixated on her shape that Squall's calm voice made her jump.

"Seifer." He said slowly. After Rinoa jumped in shock, she turned back to Squall with a questioning look. She nodded awaiting him to continue, "You're dating him?"

"That's right." Rinoa said with a smile.

"Heh, that explains a lot." With that Squall walked away and Rinoa remained stationary. Questions filled her mind as she watched him head away with his head pointed down and hands in his pockets.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''

"Here it is: dorm 247." Irvine opened the door and revealed the neat room inside. A clothed table stood before two doors. Everything was clean and the table held a few stacks of papers and books neatly. "Welcome home." Irvine chuckled.

He made his way to the left of the two doors and pushed it slightly. The door swung open. Selphie arched her head and peered inside the unoccupied chamber. All that laid was a simple bed, wrinkle free, and desk that contained no books or remnants of any previous owner. "Come on in," Irvine urged.

Selphie walked in cautiously turning about. The room was small, smaller than any place she'd ever lived. She observed the clean walls and bright window that stood beside her desk showing a sight of the green plains of Balamb. At once, her heart swelled in warmth.

"I love it!" She cried. She spun about and threw her arms around Irvine. "Thank you, thank you so much for bring me here!"

"You think you'll like it?" Irvine asked as Selphie moved away. She nodded happily and trotted over back to the window. Immediately, she lost herself in the sea of green grass blades flowing like oceanic waves. Irvine stared at her curiously, "so you're not going like miss Trabia or anything are ya?"

Selphie stood in place with her hands clasped behind her back. As Irvine's question reached her mind, she turned her head to the side and looked at the blue tiled floor. "Oh, Trabia…" She dazed off recalling her fondest memories, friends she knew in the orphanage, meeting Mr. Devin, and the special places he'd taken her. Slowly she walked to the bed and let herself fall onto the mattress soundly.

"Well, I was born there. I've always lived there." Her smile slowly dissolved as she remembered the last meeting with Devin. Her body shivered, "… I think I'm ready to live someplace else you know?" She looked back up to Irvine and forced a smile. "Tee-hee, definitely! I'll be great here." Irvine looked at her contently.

A knock sounded at the door, followed shortly by the sound of the door opening. "Selphie dear are you here yet?" A melodious voice filled the room. Selphie excitedly jumped up recognizing who it was. A few seconds passed and Edea appeared in Selphie's doorway. "Oh you found Irvine, I'm glad." She turned her head back and motioned someone to follow. Two cloaked figures glided inside with each a box in their arms. They hat yellow hats that shadowed their faces and maroon robes that covered every inch of their skin.

Edea, who already found herself inside Selphie'e small room smiled at her gracefully, "Well dear I noticed as you left that I only sent you off with your uniform and the clothes you came with." She turned to two workers behind her and signaled to rest the boxes. "I simply thought that couldn't do. These are my old clothes, I hoped they'd fit you but I can only imagine they'll be loose. I'm terribly sorry."

Selphie squeaked in joy, "No way! I love them!"

A sweet laughed escaped Edea, "But dear you haven't even seen them."

"I don't need to, I already do!"

Irvine grinned with a small chuckle behind while Edea simply stood elegantly and smiled. Selphie still looked excitedly at the boxes trying to recall the last time she'd had new clothes.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

After the time she'd wasted on Squall, Rinoa decided to return back to her prior goal which was delving headfirst into books. She'd reviewed all her material from her classes and skimmed a few lessons ahead. It was a strategic idea if she wanted to always to stay ahead.

Even if you didn't want to read, the library was amongst the few best locations for gossip channels. Between shelves all news traveled in and out of student's ears. The library served as a sort of meeting location that people swapped stories just as much as they swapped books. The library aides were gossip queens and kings by simply sitting and minding their own business.

Rinoa didn't participate in gossip herself, but a juicy story or two did interest her.

"You know those twins that always hang out by the directory?"

"Duh, of course."

"They had a huge fight! I saw it!"

"Those girls never leave each other's side, I don't believe that for a second."

"I'm so serious it's not even funny, they got into a fight about a boy."

As the simple conversation mentioned in **loud** whispers traveled through the close vicinity, Rinoa blinked and turned her head ever so slightly. She vaguely knew the twins being discussed, they were well known for being joined by the hip, and Rinoa had the misfortune of them stealing her best Triple Triad cards.

"Tell me from the beginning!"

"Well Shelinda told me that Jerod heard from Jack who saw a guy playing cards with one of the twins, and lost. She was blushing big time, and after the guy left the other twin like freaked out and went off yelling about she lost the game on purpose and stuff. Jack went and asked them about what was going on and turns out she's a CC Group card member and she lost the card game for a date."

"That's it? You better have a name for that guy or this was the lamest story ever."

"Oh yeah, the guy who played cards… umm I know it I hear it all the time… oh yeah Irvine!"

Rinoa slammed her book on the surface of the table and shot a look towards the gossiping girls. They were too heavily indulged into their conversation to notice her, of course. "Hey!" She snapped loudly causing them to glance her way. "This guy Irvine Kinneas?"

The narrator of the tale looked down for a moment and thought, "Um, I think so. I've only heard of one Irvine though." Fuming in anger Rinoa stomped to her feet and stormed out of the library, it was near closing time anyways. She rushed to her dorm and kicked the door ajar.

Of all things to expect, this wasn't what Rinoa had intended. A small brunette in a school uniform sat outside of the door of the vacant room with a pile of clothes. She picked the articles one by one, folded them, and stacked them beside her. With each item she picked up a big smile appeared on her face.

"Uh, hi?" Rinoa said bluntly. The girl looked up from her folding and acknowledged her. They met eyes and stared for a quiet awkward moment. "Can I help you?" Rinoa continued, uncomfortably. The girl shook her head and leapt to her feet nimbly. She shook her head happily and stuck out her hand.

"Sorry about that! I'm your new roommate. I just came today." She smiled widely and tilted her head jollily.

Rinoa shook her hand and politely returned her grin, "Sorry about that, I wasn't told about any roommate. I've kind of had a bad day."

Selphie nodded sweetly and returned to her position beside her clothes. "Don't worry about it! Tee-hee, it's kinda funny cause this is been like the best day for me." She paused and thought for a moment, "Rinoa right? Nice to meet'cha." She folded her hands over her lap and smiled.

Surprised, Rinoa slowly nodded. "That's right, and you're?"

"Selphie Tilmitt." She said promptly.

"Oh, nice to meet you." Rinoa said softly as she gently sat before Selphie and her pile of clothes. "You're new here? Where you from?"

Selphie continued to grin widely and full heartedly, "I'm from Trabia. I just came here to Balamb with Irvine."

"What?" Rinoa said frankly. Her eyes widened now even more surprised. Having a new roommate without being informed wasn't incredibly paranormal but she arrived with Irvine? Her Irvine? Irvine Kinneas? It matched up, Irvine did go to Trabia. However, that was only a day ago and he'd already returned? Worse than that, he hadn't come to see her?! "You came here with Irvine?"

Happily, Selphie nodded positively. "Yep he brought me here. He's so great isn't he? He told me you guys were best buddies."

Rinoa felt like growling. "Yeah… great," She mumbled out instead. Hastily she brought herself to her feet and spun around sharply. "I think I'll go see wonderful little Irvine." While gritting her teeth she stomped out of the dorm.

'''''''''''''''''''''

"If I win this card game, you tell me a secret."

Irvine looked over his hand of cards watching the Diamond twin with a bubbly smile. They'd agreed to Dollet rules, and to be honest Irvine didn't understand what that meant. Main difference was he picked his cards at random.

It didn't matter much anyway, if Irvine ever won it was purely by luck. Plus, Diamond intentionally lost rounds if Irvine had something appealing when he won.

"I got no secrets to share, how's this though? I win you give me a kiss." He said slyly watching her reaction. She seemed slightly taken aback but remained calm.

"Well, okay I guess. You'll never beat me though, I've been going easy on you." She winked evilly acknowledging her superior card playing. Irvine shrugged and placed his first card down.

The Diamond twin and him alternated putting their cards down with Diamond far in the lead as far as points went. Irvine clicked his tongue irritated realizing she wasn't throwing her match again. The moment of the last card came, Irvine's move. He looked at his hopeless Geezard card and dropped it into place. By nothing short of a miracle he caught luck on a Plus combo turning over enough cards to win.

Diamond looked stunned as she counted to cards to determine the winner. Irvine was actually just as shocked as Diamond for his good luck but played collected, as he knew what was in store for him.

_No one resists an Irvine Kiss._

"I guess you won." Diamond said still shocked. She stared up at Irvine who laid his charming gentle gaze on her. Starting to blush slightly she turned her head back down to the card she never placed on the board. "Okay, go ahead and collect," she said nervously.

An inaudible chuckle escaped Irvine's lips as he slid over to Diamond. He lifted her chin to till she met his gaze. They met views, eye to eye. Diamond eased as she lost herself in Irvine's irises. With his hand still holding her face toward his, Irvine brought his lips to Diamond's.

"IRVINE KINNEAS OPEN THIS DOOR!"

Irvine shot back almost immediately and jerked his head towards the door, which raged with loud bangs and familiar voice shouting incredibly angrily. "Oh shit," Irvine mumbled.

"Who is that?" Diamond asked innocently.

Slowly making his way to his feet Irvine stretched his arms. "Just a friend." He groaned. He advanced to the paper-thin door, slowly turned the knob, and dashed onto the other side closing it soundly. Now a very angry Rinoa stood before him, her hands on her hips.

"Hi, Rin…" Irvine said goofily.

Rinoa scowled and turned away crossing her arms. "I'm interrupting a date aren't I? Urgh! Irvine I cannot believe you. I've been having the worst day ever and you're prancing around with girls from all over the globe." She continued to grit her teeth still incredibly irritated.

"You mean Selphie? Listen, that's something really huge I can't explain to you now but I will." He clasped his hands together and ranted miserably. "I promise tomorrow I'll take you out for breakfast and I'll tell you all about it and you can tell me all about this horrible day, but if you don't leave now it'll be my second day in a row that I sleep alone!"

Rinoa sighed and stared at him, "Fine. Have your fun." She turned away and sassily stormed down the halls.

Irvine watched her until she disappeared and cautiously reentered his dorm. Diamond sat on the ground still by a shuffle of cards awaiting him patiently. "So where were we?" Irvine asked flirtatiously.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''

When Rinoa awoke the next morning Selphie was nowhere in the dorm and when she went to Seifer's dorm, he too was gone. Being it was still the weekend she was oblivious to where they had all disappeared. Irvine no doubt was trying to sneak away from last night's date or letting her down gently. Either way, it was nothing she intended to find herself intruding upon.

Instead, Rinoa waited by the gates of Garden. The breezy morning wind from outside blew gently pushing her hair out of her face. She gazed out to the courtyard with its magnificent fountains and cheerful students. Lost in thought and observation she barely noticed someone behind her.

"What are you just stalking me now?"

Instantly Rinoa turned around to find Squall facing her with a confused look. "Oh, morning Squall." She replied cheerfully. Her eyes fell on his scar, still having a look of freshness with its bright crimson appearance. "You know, you need to be cleaning that."

Squall raised an eyebrow.

"It'll get infected. Unless, you clean it. Have you?" Rinoa watched for Squall's response. He crossed his arms and turned away. "Okay, you're not saying anything but I think you mean you haven't." She reached out, grasped his hand, and started dragging him from the main hall.

"Wh-what're you doing? I got work to go do!" Squall complained. Rinoa tightened her grip and pulled down a purple colored hallway.

"Listen, if you don't take care of your wounds you could get sick and make things worse. In your case that scar will get all gross and stuff. Plus, do you want that thing on your face forever? Well, never mind it might just be there forever but don't make it worse!" Rinoa stopped at the end of the hall in a white clinic airy and fresh with all windows opened. "Dr. Kadowaki!" She called.

The plump doctor revealed herself from her examining room and bowed her head in welcome. "Oh what's he doing here? You hurt again?" She said bluntly.

Rinoa cupped her hand over mouth and shook her head softly, "I just need some rubbing alcohol and peroxide." The doctor nodded politely and pointed to a few bottles sitting on her desk.

With that, she returned into the examining room, followed by grunt of pain coming from a young student. "If you didn't want it to hurt then you shouldn't have been in the Training Center without a partner!"

Rinoa stopped her laughing and found a box of cotton swabs neighboring the bottles. She wet a few with alcohol and turned back to Squall. "Hold still!" Quickly she brought the wet cotton to Squall's scar. He slightly cringed at the searing burn of the alcohol but made no physical expression. After the initial touch, Rinoa gently rubbed the rest of Squall's scar. "Does it hurt?" She asked not taking her eyes off the crimson red starting to stain her swab.

Squall looked blankly at her, "No." He said in frank tone. Rinoa laughed and changed swabs.

"Okay good." She giggled and swiftly finished. "Alright all done!" She threw the swabs away, some stained red and others just wet. Squall made no gesture of gratitude, simply turned around and walked away. "You're welcome." Rinoa called out blatantly.

"I didn't say thanks." Squall replied. Rinoa jerked in place and stared at him in awe.

"You should have!" She shouted.

Dr. Kadowaki stuck her head out impatiently from the curtain of the examining room and crossly glared at the two of them. "Hush up! If you got to fight, take it outside then come in and get fixed up okay?"

Rinoa nodded at the doctor and shuffled out, "I'm late anyways." She huffed passing Squall. Squall gave her a blank gaze slightly confused. He turned to the doctor who gave him a disapproving nod before disappearing back into the examining room.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''

"There you are Rin! I've been waiting for you, where ya been?" Irvine called, while leaning against the gate of the entrance to Garden.

Rinoa flew passed him pursing her lips, "I don't want to talk about it." Irvine watched her rush away into the courtyard. His eyes kept up with her as she disappeared from distance. Confused, he rubbed the back of his neck wondering if she knew he wasn't with her.

Outside, Rinoa made her way to a vacant empty lot of the courtyard. She turned her head side to side and noticed Irvine was nowhere to be seen. Miserably she released a groan realizing she shooed Irvine away with her frustration. _Just perfect,_ she thought to herself. She knelt on the ground and hugged her knees inward. _Talking to Irvine is probably the only thing I want to do right now… _

"Thank you."

Startled, Rinoa leapt to her feet and spun about to see Squall behind her. She jumped back and breathed in heavily. "Wha-what are you doing here!" Her eyes bulged with fear from the startle.

"I came to say thank you, and I guess sorry." Squall replied monotonously. He stood calmly and showed little intention of walking away from the scene immediately. Still in question, Rinoa observed him and his relaxed face.

"Really? You came all the way out here to do that?" A hint of a smile touched her lips.

Squall simply nodded and held his out, as he spoke, "It's no big deal. You just seemed mad." To this Rinoa turned around again and sighed.

"Oh so you don't know why I'm mad. Well great. That totally makes things right." She held a hand up and flickered it motioning Squall to go away. He crossed his arms and thought for a moment.

"What're you doing?" He said bluntly still trying to understand her gesture. Rinoa somewhat cringed oddly and faced Squall once again. The same placid expression remained planted on his fine features.

Hands on her hips Rinoa eased in and brought her face closer to his. "You really are clueless aren't you?" Squall moved his head away again and stayed quiet. A few moments passed and Squall made no motion of communication whatsoever. "Squall!" He looked to her quickly but vocalized none. Rinoa stood shocked; slowly her hand came over her mouth as she muffled laughter.

"What?" Squall asked not understanding.

Rinoa stood straight and halted her chuckles. "Oh it's nothing, it's just- oh never mind. Anyways, are you hungry?" Squall stood silent but arched his eyebrows unsure of what to answer. "You do eat right?"

"Of course, what kind of question is that?"

"Alright, let's go then!" Rinoa called happily heading further away from Balamb.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Seifer sat relaxed yet bored with his feet crossed and propped up onto Quistis' desk. Quistis not only didn't seem to care, but she hadn't even quite acknowledged him. The ignoring didn't actually bother him, rather it simply felt unsettling. A half hour went by in silence.

_Is she blind? _Seifer thought arching an eyebrow. He straightened his legs letting them make a loud thump on the surface of Quistis' desk. She made no interest towards him. Seifer rested his head and groaned. Must he endure two full hours of this?

He gripped the armrests of his chair and swung back stomping his feet on the floor. Swiftly he stood and jumped a foot from the desk and withdrew his sword. Quistis sifted through papers making no response whatsoever that she anything, let alone Seifer's presence. Steadily Seifer swung his sword side to side with sharp angles and difficult techniques.

Quistis peered one eye his way.

Seifer continued thrusting his sword through the air cutting through with speed and skill. His moves seemed flawless. There was no hesitance or break in his actions. After he completed one technique, he took a stance for an even more difficult move.

"That's very impressive Seifer." Quistis said quietly. Seifer sheathed his sword and returned to the chair content with her response. "But I must say," her eyes lowered and focused intently on Seifer, "they seem oddly familiar."

With his usual sardonic attitude, Seifer smiled grimly and squinted his eyes. "I'd take credit, but I don't make my own moves dear instructor."

A laugh escaped Quistis. She stood up and swept one arm around her waist while the other covered her mouth as she continued to chuckle. "Oh I know Seifer, even the most skilled fighters start by mimicking others." She moved from behind her desk and stood right in front of Seifer. Slowly she met gazes and moved her head closer until they were on even eye views. "I'm no gunblade specialist but if I'm not mistaken, those are moves that are in most sorceress/knight movies."

"Your point?" Seifer said not shifting at all.

"Seifer, do you have a fanatical desire to be a knight?" Quistis had a sly smile on her face as well.

"That's not a good assumption to make instructor, I just like to challenge myself." Seifer leapt off his chair and away from Quistis and quietly went to a lone wall of the room. "And even if I did, what good does that do you to know?"

With a small shrug, Quistis leaned against her desk and crossed her arms gently. "Well nothing you can imagine. I'm just trying to get you to speak." She looked his way and let her spectacles slide down the bridge of her nose. "Apparently I succeeded."

Seifer scoffed and squinted his eyes crossly. "So for an hour we'll talk about how I don't like sorceress knights."

"Not at all," Quistis stood straight and readjusted her glasses, "actually I was hoping to see how you were able to master those moves. No actor even does it with such precision."

"And now you're complimenting me? How much are you getting paid woman?" Seifer retorted sarcastically.

"Despite your terrible attitude and apathy towards class work I won't deny you your credit to your unmatched swordsmen skills." She advanced toward him and smiled. "Care to take that blade out and show me again?"

Slightly taken aback, Seifer thought for a moment. What she just said sounded very much like her but she sounded so much more kinder than normal, more patient. She wanted to gain some information out of him. Without realizing it, Seifer gave her satisfaction. "What a joke, you know as well as me Squall and I are still at a tie."

Quistis looked bored now that Seifer refused to show her any demonstration. She sighed and walked back to her desk. She sat gracefully and viewed him still across her against the wall. Seifer turned a cheek and looked irritably at the ground. Squall, just mentioning the name brought frustration to his mind. He became sour at the mere thought of Squall.

While Seifer fumed to himself, he noticed Quistis no longer had her attention focused to him. Still standing with her arms crossed she looked happily dazed in a mindset far from the classroom. "What are you thinking about?" Seifer said in a rude, smart aleck manner.

Upon hearing Seifer, Quistis shook her head slightly and returned her view to Seifer. "Pardon?"

"What the hell are you doing anyways?" Seifer scowled understanding her decreasing interest in her duties with him. He sat down and raised his eyebrows at Quistis who looked rather dazed again. However, this time he didn't need to jolt her to return her back to the present.

A moment passed and Quistis stood straight. She looked at Seifer and tilted her head slightly, "Why'd you choose to be a gunblade specialist?" Her voice sounded sincerely curious and innocent. The formality and strictness in her normal tone vanished.

Seifer opened his mouth to speak and then stopped. He looked to the ground and tapped his foot against the ground as he attempted to figure a suitable substitute answer that didn't contradict what he earlier had said. Realizing it was futile to keep lying he forced his head to face Quistis and spoke, "I did it for my romantic dream."

There was no snide remark or sense of apathy, Quistis nodded with interest and sat at her chair still giving an expression motioning him to continue. Seifer turned his head, lost focus on any certain object, and repeated whatever was in his mind.

"I liked sorceress— really liked them. I wanted to be a knight too. There's no more Sorceresses anymore, they've died out like a extinct species of animals." He paused and reminisced his childhood life living in Esthar, "A species that was really amazing… Sorceresses, they weren't evil," Seifer closed his eyes and breathed in, "it's the people that hunted them that were."

Quistis cleared her throat halting Seifer. He looked up and watched Quistis look at him kindly. "It's alright Seifer, sorcery doesn't really ever die. There's Headmistress Edea here, and Sorceress Ellone in Esthar."

"When's the last time you heard about her?" He snapped immediately. "The news stopped reporting about her, newspapers had no articles about her, it's like he left the surface of the earth! She's gone, dead probably and Esthar knows if they tell the world the hunt for the next Sorceress begins. It's sick."

"Here's a thought," Quistis said softly. Seifer sat back allowing Quistis to continue speaking. "If that's true, if Sorceress Ellone truly died then her powers belong to someone, correct?"

Seifer nodded in agreement.

"Then instead of being bitter about that, why don't you find out where Ellone is and if she is gone you can find the next Sorceress. Perhaps she's closer than you think."

Seifer shifted in his seat and made himself more comfortable as Quistis and him continued their conversation about sorceresses.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''

Rinoa exited the café where Squall and her had eaten a relaxing breakfast. Squall had said very little shy of his order, even that was a brief and simple request. Rinoa surprisingly didn't mind the silence, she attempted to make Squall speak some and succeeded but didn't pry to make him even more verbal.

Squall walked ahead of her as he gazed over seeming preoccupied.

"Squall." Rinoa called causing him to turn back to her. She slowly walked closer to him and nervously faced her head to the ground, "Squall yesterday why did you leave when you found out I was dating Seifer?"

Immediately in response, Squall crossed his arms and looked away. Irritated, Rinoa placed her arms on her hips and bent forward. "Squall if you have something to do with Seifer's scar then just tell me straight! I'll leave you alone then."

"It's none of your business what happens with Seifer and me." Squall muttered.

"So you did give him that scar! Squall why?! What's Seifer done to you? I know he's kinda rough and a bit drunk with power with that whole… Disciplinary Committee thing but other than tha—"

"If you don't know the story, then stop bothering me." Squall snapped cutting Rinoa off. "For being his girlfriend you don't know much about him."

Stunned by his comeback, Rinoa stared lost for words. Her eyes welled up as her sensitivity took over. She spun around and quickly rubbed her eyes clean. "Well," She said following a pause to clear her voice, "you're just a terrible person!" She flew past him and ran back in the direction of Garden.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Edea gave Selphie an important assignment. After studying and practicing reading skills all morning long she sent Selphie to the library and ordered she stay there for a few hours to practice reading a book to her liking. Any and all

When Selphie made way to the library, she wondered what it would contain. Books of course, but were people the studious quiet folk who followed the stereotype? She'd never been into a library, she knew it was a place to be quiet but were you allowed to speak at all? Although confused, Selphie grew excited as she came closer and closer to the library.

However, Selphie was severely disappointed. There were no people with large spectacles carrying books larger than they were, in fact there was no one actually reading at all. People had papers and discussed with other students but no one sat at a desk **reading.**

Something odd Selphie couldn't quite understand is clusters of people would meet in a corner, speak, giggle, and gasp then disperse. When she first entered a group of girls surrounded the front desk and spoke in hushed voices to a girl whose hair was collected in a pigtail braid in the back of her head. She blushed and squealed.

Selphie leaned in her ear closer and only managed to hear a few fragments of conversation.

"His written test is soon, why don't you offer to he-"

"… at to say!! I'd couldn't!"

"Suck it up Am—"

"Oh oh he's coming this way! Saaaay something." The last girl hissed loud enough for Selphie to clearly understand.

Just as the group of girls did, Selphie looked up and watched a built student walk with a book tucked under his arm pass the front desk. He slowed his pace and smiled shyly at the group of girls. After his wave, he turned his head back to the ground and trudged away uncomfortably.

As he came closer to Selphie, she noticed he was muttering something under his breath. "Gosh you coulda said something! She probably thinks you're a dork!"

Upon hearing him, Selphie could only laugh. It was close to never that she had heard two sides of a situation, and to be truthful she loved it. She chuckled hard so that the student felt forced to look at her strangely until she noticed his vision on her.

When Selphie met eyes with the unfamiliar student, she hiccupped her laughs and looked embarrassedly at him. "Uh hi…" She choked out.

"What's so funny?" He asked bluntly.

"Uh n-nothing!" Selphie blushed herself, and somehow couldn't simply bring herself to say anything. She laughed and rushed out of the library. The student didn't run after her, simply watched her scurry away.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Rinoa spent most of the day training with her dog Angelo in the training center. Seifer had not come to see her once, and didn't bother to show up at her dorm that night either. Even as she was ready to fall under her covers and sleep, the only human male keeping her company was Irvine.

"So what if he didn't show up?" Irvine asked flatly, rather apathetic anyways.

"Nothing, but something big just happened and instead of talking to me, or even looking at me he totally ignores me!" Rinoa collapsed on her bed and sighed. "I know I'm totally being paranoid but do you think he's—"

"Having an affair?" Irvine finished as he looked at Rinoa in a very matter-of-factly way. "I totally see that being possibly Rin, keep a closer eye on him. I mean not that I know of any girl who'd **want** to be with him." Irvine dazed off only to be rudely interrupted by Rinoa's angry snort. "Okay chill out Rinoa, why would Seifer be with some other girl when he has you?"

Rinoa laid her legs straight and held her forehead close to her knees. "I don't know what's wrong. I mean I should be mad at you right now but all I can think about is Seifer and Sq—" Catching herself, Rinoa held her hand over her mouth shocked to acknowledge that Squall's name almost came out involuntarily. Who was Squall? Why in Hyne's name did he scar Seifer? Was there a reason he was always so quiet?

"You still there?" Irvine asked noticing Rinoa who lost eye focus and stared dumbly at the wall ahead. She shook her head upon hearing Irvine's voice and looked to him.

"Yeah I'm fine. Well, enough about Seifer, he's just depressing. So, you never told me about that girl you brought with you. Who is she? A new student? I know you slept with her just tell me why you brought her here."

Irvine leapt to his feet and cocked his head back, "I did not sleep with her! Seriously Rinoa, I'm not an animal I can control myself." He turned and around and smiled to himself as he imagined Rinoa's fuming face responding to his very contradicting comment.

"Sure, whatever. Who is she though!"

Slowly Irvine turned around and nodded, if he couldn't share the truth with Rinoa there was no one in the world he could share it with. To be honest the events that occurred in Trabia haunted him as they swam endlessly in his mind. "Okay fine, but you can't tell anyone. Headmistress Edea doesn't even know all of this." Rinoa nodded loyally as Irvine began to speak.

"Hey guys!" Selphie's perky and happy voice jolted the two as the turned to see her at the doorway of the dorm. She skipped merrily to Irvine and wrapped her arms around him happily. "Whatcha you two talking about?"

Rinoa smiled at her fresh roommate and shrugged, "Nothing important, how was your day Selphie?"

Excitedly Selphie jumped in place, "Great! Matron is soooo nice! I went to the library and then I just went back to her but still so cool! I mean love learning!" Still enwrapped in her excitement from the day she didn't notice Rinoa's odd looks.

"It's nice to see you so excited, but today was a weekend." She said slowly.

"Oh I know, but Matron says I need to study super hard everyday to catch up. I'm really behind, you know?"

Rinoa stayed hush, and Selphie turned to Irvine happily. "Well it was great to see you again Irvine, and you too Rinoa, I'm just tired so I'm going to bed." She hugged Irvine and again and disappeared from the room followed by the sound of her door closing.

"Well, you know I should get going too." Irvine said as he slowly started walking out of the room. Rinoa stood and placed her hands on her hips.

"What do you mean! You got some explaining to do!"

"Rin please! She's right there!" Irvine hissed sarcastically as he continued to head out the door. He let himself out leaving Rinoa clueless and a bit angry.

''''''''''''''''''''''''

Although Irvine did actually intend to enlighten Rinoa on all that had happened to him, her anger seemed more entertaining. He still chuckled over it as he reached his dorm. Inside the room, he found something a bit more odd.

Zell was a proactive person; he never sat about doing nothing at all. Usually when Irvine came around, Zell would study or something else productive. Now, he simply sat with a confused look on his face and did absolutely nothing but sit and think.

"Is thinking so hard you can't multi-task?" Irvine asked in joking tone. Zell looked slowly at him and shrugged.

"I don't get women man," He started and sighed. Lazily he leaned in his chair and stared at the ceiling. "I mean I feel weird enough trying to just look at a girl I know, but random chicks just laugh at me. Is it my tattoo? My hair? I mean what?"

Irvine pulled a chair from under the study table and sat happily down. "Women Zell? This is my territory! Let me hear all about it!"

Zell hid his face behind his large palms and shrugged, "I don't wanna talk about it." Irvine raised an eyebrow and stood his ground. A moment later Zell groaned and nodded, "Okay I do, but it's just embarrassing. It's a girl that is usually at the library, right?"

"The one with the pigtail?" Irvine asked.

"Oh Hyne please don't tell me you've slept with her!" Zell moaned.

"Oh chill out, no I didn't. It's just you talk about her a lot, and you get this dumb grin every time you do. I've kind of gotten tired waiting for you to tell me you asked her out already."

Zell shrugged content, "Okay just listen. Today I was going to try to talk to her but all I could get out was a wave. I mean she's with too many girls! It's a swarm! I can't take that!"

"Too many girls is never my complaint." Irvine chuckled.

"Are you going to take this seriously or not?" Zell snapped. Irvine stopped his laughter and nodded seriously. "Like I said, all I got out was a wave. Then this girl I passed busted out laughing at me. When I asked her what she ran out laughing!"

"Maybe she's gots a crush on ya." Irvine winked. Zell moaned as he stood up.

"I highly doubt it." With that, he strolled out of the room and slammed his bedroom door loudly.

Irvine watched the lights from under Zell's door to flash off until he relaxed and propped his feet on the table. He only remained in this position for a few minutes for small knock sounded at the door. Hastily, yet smoothly, Irvine landed back on his feet and answered the door.

Dressed in a tight student uniform with her curls bouncy and soft as ever, stood Scarlet. Irvine smiled widely as she inched closer to him. "You actually had me convinced the other day." She laughed having her voice drowned into Irvine like liquor.

Irvine wrapped his arms around her and whispered in her ear, "Oh you know that was just an act. So what took you so long?"

Scarlet took a step away from Irvine and playfully hit him, "You spend too much time with Rinoa." Irvine swooped in and kissed her softly.

"That can change." He said jokingly. Scarlet sighed, passed him, and tiptoed through the room the open door leading to Irvine's bed.

"So who's your new girlfriend?" Scarlet asked quietly.

"Selphie?" Irvine responded as he quietly closed the door. Scarlet nodded as she slipped into Irvine' unlit room. The cowboy rubbed the back of his neck and sighed as he thought of Selphie. Her angelic smile, her innocent laugh, and yet her horrid history…

"Irvine are you coming or not?" Scarlet called out slyly.

"Selphie? She's something else." Irvine uttered under his breath as he walked over to his room. Scarlet wrapped her arms around Irvine and smiled as she moved in for a kiss. Irvine hesitantly smiled and returned Scarlet's embrace as he shoved the door closed.

'---------------


	19. Chapter 18

"_Soredeiikedo"  
("That's just fine by me")_

_Beautiful World  
__Chapter Eighteen_

_"Well look at the time, I can't believe I lost track like that," Quistis giggled gracefully as she turned back to Seifer. "Well I suppose speaking with me isn't so terrible is it?" _

_Seifer sat back and shrugged, "I don't know what you're talking about." He spat blatantly. For a response, Quistis only laughed as she turned around and looked at her clock._

_"You're here for a half an hour longer than needed, and only our second day. We need some self control don't we?" _

_"Stop talking like that!" Seifer snapped as a mental picture flashed through his mind. _

_Quistis titled her head and laughed. "You sound so much like Squall sometimes." She noticed Seifer's face change to a more disgruntled look. "Well never mind that, tomorrow come directly after class and we can get our session done quickly. I prefer to get tasks done as soon as I can." _

"_Just another task on your check list am I?" _

"_Naturally Seifer." _

After speaking with Quistis for a full two hours about his love, desire, and aspirations from Sorceresses Seifer didn't feel the need to talk to anyone. He cooped himself up in his room and spent the day finishing one of many sorceress books. He was rather surprised that he didn't completely detest his conversation with Instructor Trepe, in fact he enjoyed parts of it. Although, Quistis did have a way of irritating him by randomly bringing Squall into the conversation.

_Well I am in this mess cause of him_, Seifer thought bitterly to himself. He pulled on his shoes and looked around the room for his homework. In actuality, Rinoa had done most the work a while ago. They were to write a report about the war in Timber. Rinoa was intrigued by the current situation of the matter, resulting that she knew its history like the back of her hand.

Seifer couldn't care less. Nonetheless, he stuffed his report between his books and stood up ready to leave for class. As he thought about the report, he recalled Rinoa was someone he hadn't spoken too in the passed few days. Usually if Seifer didn't care to seek Rinoa out, she'd track him down better than her own dog.

_Weird,_ Seifer huffed as he left his dormitory. As though the thought had escaped his mind to become reality, Rinoa stood in the hall awaiting Seifer to exit. She smiled cheerily and came to his side. "Rinoa!" Seifer said rather surprised.

"Something wrong?" She asked innocently. Seifer shook his head as Rinoa began leading them down the hall. "Well anyways I couldn't find Irvine anywhere, and my roommate has a earlier start than me, so I decided to find you." She squeezed his arm and exhaled relaxed, "I feel like we haven't spoke in so long."

Seifer tilted his head allowed him to crack his neck, "Yeah, I just haven't wanted to talk about—"

"Your scar? It's okay, I won't bother you about it. You're probably right, it's not really my business." Seifer couldn't see it, but Rinoa held a mischievous smile as she spoke.

The two walked in silence as they reached the second floor full of classrooms and students busily trying to enter various rooms. Instructor Trepe apparently hadn't arrived to class as of yet and her locked door showed it. A small mass of students crowded the door as Rinoa and Seifer arrived to the door, amongst them stood Squall.

Rinoa lit up happily upon seeing a familiar face, "Hey Squall!" She waved completely forgetting their earlier events. Squall looked up to her, then slowly to Seifer. After Seifer and Squall met eyes views, he turned his head back to the ground and made no response to Rinoa.

"How do you know Squall?" Seifer asked quietly yet angrily. Rinoa looked to her boyfriend innocently and shrugged.

"Just bumped into him, nothing really—"

Seifer pushed Rinoa to a corner of the hall, "When did you meet him?" Rinoa stood agape in shock and wasn't quite able to make out Seifer's sudden aggression towards her. Without a doubt, Seifer was an aggressive person, but never to **her**.

"Seifer! What is wrong with you?" She croaked insecurely.

"I don't want you talking to him." Seifer growled.

Rinoa pulled away from Seifer's grip and scowled at him, "Don't you talk to me like that! I can talk to whoever I want, I'm not your property!" With that, she rushed down the hall passing Instructor Trepe that just entered eye view.

Seifer sighed as she rushed away and looked back to Squall who still coolly watched the tile beneath his feet.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine didn't set an alarm to wake up, and personally didn't care if he missed class altogether. He'd still be copying Rinoa's notes regardless. Whether Scarlet had the same fortune or not, she too remained asleep.

The two laid blissfully unaware when Zell started cursing about his tardiness, and when Rinoa came to and bombarded them with loud wake up calls. However, one small peep miraculously woke Irvine in an instant.

"Irvine! Are you still there?" Selphie called sweetly.

Irvine shot his head up pushing Scarlet off him. He shook his head and looked about his room trying to collect his thoughts. Scarlet rubbed her eyes and looked at him with a very confused glance, what in Hyne's name was startling him so while **she** was there? "Irvine, are you in there?"

Clumsily, Irvine leapt out of bed to the cold tile floor partially covered in clothes. He scrambled to his feet, rushed to the door, and poked his head out. "Mornin' Selphie!" He said cheerily as he caught his breath.

Selphie tilted her head and smiled, "Sorry you busy? I just got a break from Matron, she said you'd probably be in class right now but I thought I'd check."

_Oh crap! Class! _Irvine smiled weakly and nodded, "Uh well I gotta get to class. When are you heading back to your class?"

"Oh soon, Matron says she has a surprise for me today. If you're busy I'll just skip my break. I'm excited to see what the surprise is!" Selphie danced tip toe to tip toe and merrily leaned her to the side. Irvine gulped uncomfortably remembering Scarlet was still in the room.

"Well, come meet me after your class and we'll uh… hang out!" Irvine winked and ducked his head back behind his door.

"Okie dokie! Sounds good!" Selphie called loudly from the other side of the door.

Irvine heard the soft pattering of Selphie's footfalls fading down the hall he smoothed his silky hair and looked back to his bed. Scarlet sat up straight, one eyebrow arched. "That was Selphie, anyways I need to get ready for class."

Scarlet pulled Irvine's sheets against her and pouted, "Aw already? Come on Irvine just a teeny tiny bit longer. You're already late." Irvine looked at her carefully and bit his lip in thought. Scarlet continued to throw come hither looks at him until finally Irvine closed his bedroom door.

"Fine ten minutes!"

'''''''''''''''''''

As soon as Selphie heard Irvine was busy, she didn't dawdle to head back to Edea's office and return to class. Matron told her she had half an hour to herself but personally, excitement captivated her too much to wait about doing nothing.

She opened the lighted doors to Edea's office to see her sitting back in her desk with paper work. Upon hearing Selphie's entrance Edea raised her head and smiled serenely at her visitor. Her black locks shifted softly as she stood up. "I take it Irvine wasn't there? I assumed as much."

"Oh no, he was there. He just said he was running late." Selphie looked down to her foot, brushed off her feet, and returned her attention to Edea. "So I came back, that's okay right?"

Edea nodded gently and motioned Selphie to sit down. She glided across the room back to her desk and opened a drawer. "I know you have much to learn, and it's completely out of order for me to do this, but I couldn't help myself." She resumed her standing position now carrying a glossy wooden box long and rectangular.

Selphie gasped, "Is that for **me**?" Her eyes widened as she watched the light of the room reflect from its smooth surface. Edea's long and graceful hands stroked it as she looked for the opening clasp.

"Consider this something to work towards, I found in storage and although it was a quick judgment, I felt it was right with you." Edea pulled the lid slowly letting the metal hinges slightly creak. Hesitantly, Selphie stood up and approached the open box in Edea's arms. Inside were two maroon poles with golden effects connected by one end to each other with a black chain.

"What are they?" Selphie asked in awe.

"Knunchuks, it's a weapon. You see everyone in this school is learning to fight along with everything else. Some become mercenaries even." Edea smiled as she watched Selphie inspect the weapon inside carefully without touching the rim of the box. "You see, most students start as children to decide which weapon is best suited for them, since you have a bit of a disadvantage there I was hoping you could try this one out just to see if you like it."

Selphie carefully grasped the wooden sticks and felt their smooth exterior under her fingers. Gently she lifted them out of the box, surprised to see how big and heavy they really were. She held them straight in the air and watched them in wonder. Still smelling heavily of polish and gloss Selphie could tell that these were brand new.

Edea bowed her head and spoke proudly, "I now dub you a student of combat and skill. Use this weapon to protect you and others."

It was as though the weapon was a symbol of a new purpose. Simply holding it inflated Selphie with a new whiff of life. She nodded slowly, "I-I will!"

"Now, I'm afraid I can't teach you how to use it quite yet, for we still have much more to cover before we can spend valuable time on this. However, you can keep it, grow accustomed to it." Edea paused and pondered for a moment while Selphie stilled let her fingers glide over the smooth surface. "Well if you'd like to you practice on your own that'd be fine. I'll see if I know any SeeDs who specialize in these."

Selphie jolted her head up, "You mean I can start today!?" Her smile went ear to ear as her face beamed with joy.

Sighing sadly, Edea shook her head. "I would have to find you a suitable instructor. I'll keep my eye out, if you find someone before feel free to practice to your heart's desire." She raised a finger up and pointed as though in warning, "But! Do not let this interfere with your other practices. Academics will be your foundation and you cannot pass that just to play warrior. Do I make myself clear?"

Although Edea's voice was stern, it still was melodic and sweet. It was too difficult to perceive it as harsh.

Selphie nodded her head in agreement.

A smile touched Edea's lips, "That's a good girl. Alright today we'll practice writing," she gestured a chair that stood before her desk, "so take a seat."

'''''''''''''''''''''''''

"Please turn in your reports as you leave. Also remember, the written exam may be in two weeks but the field exam is compulsory regardless of passing the written or not. I would heavily advise you all to quickly take your trip to the Fire Cavern. If anyone needs assistance I'll be glad to accompany you, simply tell me when." With that all said, Quistis gestured to dismiss the class.

Three students promptly arrived to her desk, reports in hand all wearing an identical smile. There were two girls and one boy amongst them. Quistis looked at them kindly and smiled hesitantly, "Do you all need something?"

"Oh Instructor Trepe, that was an amazing class!" One of the girls said enthusiastically.

"Truly Instructor, you completely captured the history of Galbadia. And the way you intertwine fighting skill lessons with history is just amazing!" The second of the girls sighed admiringly.

"Well thank you two, very much." Quistis slightly blushed as the three finally passed allowing other students to approach her with their homework. As all her students began to empty out Quistis noticed Squall who was on his way to leave the class without approaching her desk. "Squall!" She called halting him from leaving. Obediently, Squall slowly returned to Quistis' desk.

"Yes instructor?" He said in his monotone way.

"I don't believe I received a report from you."

"I don't have mine… sorry." He continued, still monotone.

Quistis sighed and leaned back in her chair, "That's unbecoming Squall. A low grade in your instructor's class can revoke your right to the SeeD exam." She observed Squall's face as it showed no real change, despite her words. He crossed his arms and thought for a moment. "Any good excuse?"

"No, not really."

"Since you did suffer from an injury this weekend I'll give you till tomorrow morning to turn it in, but after that I won't accept it."

Squall nodded in response and walked out of the classroom. As Squall walked out, Seifer walked to the front of the class and carelessly let his report glide through the air until it landed before Quistis. She lifted the paper that lay before her and looked back to Seifer who had an arched eyebrow. "Is there a reason you're handing it to me personally?"

Seifer flopped into a chair that sat in front of the desk, raised his legs onto the top of Quistis' desk and crossed them. "Yeah, is there a reason Pretty Boy is getting special treatment?"

Quistis laughed as she placed Seifer's report along with everyone else's. She grasped the entire stack of papers and neatly straightened them, "Honestly Seifer, I haven't the slightest what you mean." Immediately, Seifer scoffed. Quistis threw a sharp look to him and pursed her lips, "Seifer I do show leniency towards my students when they need it. It's not just Squall despite what you think."

"It's because he's pretty isn't it?" Seifer continued in his sardonic tone.

With a sigh, Quistis paper clipped the reports and placed them in a drawer. "It's whatever you want to believe Seifer, for apparently you don't believe me." She looked at him and laid her palms flat on her desk, "So is there anything you wanted to talk about?"

Seifer looked at her oddly, "Like what?"

"Anything interesting or troubling you?" Quistis replied frankly.

With a hearty cruel laugh Seifer turned his head away, "Not I instructor. You're the one who should make up topics."

"Very well then, it seemed like you got in a quarrel with your girlfriend, care to shed some light?" She continued not changing her tone to any sort of sarcastic or insincere form.

Seifer's lip twitched slightly. "I- how do you know about that?"

"It happened in front of me."

"Urgh…"

"I'm not being nosy, I just thought it might be something on your mind. If it isn't bothering you, don't talk about it. If it is, let it out. Either way I'm here to support you."

As the last few words coded into Seifer's mind he turned to Quistis and looked deeply into her blue eyes. Serene, stern, and beautiful… He shook his head and groaned, "It's nothing."

Quistis nodded and pulled out the reports again along with a red pen.

"It's just why the hell is **she** talking to him!? I've never even said a thing about him! He doesn't talk so how did they end up meeting?"

Upon hearing Seifer's resuming of his problem, Quistis pushed her papers away and focused back to him. "Well do you think not mentioning him had the same affect? How is she to know you resented him so?" Quistis stopped her thoughts and pondered, "If you've never mentioned Squall what did you tell her about your scar?"

Seifer, now on his feet and pacing, stopped and looked back to Quistis. "I never told her anything. I just shoved it off whenever she mentioned it. She's let it go too."

"Rinoa right? That's her name? Anyways, Seifer don't you imagine if she cared about you she'd be worried to find out what happened? You two have very apparent symbols that you were in combat with each other. On the other hand, it could have been an innocent meeting of two students. On the chance, it was Rinoa's curiosity; you may owe her an explanation."

"What?! How about she tells me why she's running around Garden trying to nose around in my business?" Seifer thrust his arm out and pounded his chest. "She didn't ask me that many times! Once or twice, if she really wanted to know she could've kept asking maybe I would have told and if I didn't want her to know she could've taken an hint!"

While Seifer kept going on his rant Quistis stood up walked over to him, grabbed his head and sternly pulled it to face her. "Rinoa stood outside of your door following a trail of blood, she saw the inside of your dorm with the trail getting thicker. Tell me Seifer, is it normal for someone to be apathetic when they see something like that?" Seifer jerked his head from Quistis' grip and looked away bitterly. "I had already seen Squall just a bit earlier, I knew how he was and I knew you couldn't be much worse. Dr. Kadowaki treated Squall, but you Seifer, you were a bloody mess." She crossed arms and legs, "If Rinoa saw you like that she may as well fainted. Concern is something you should be considerate about too Seifer."

Every word Quistis said sounded so logical, it bothered him so. He stood stiff as Quistis looked at him awaiting a reply. "Well right now, she's mad at me. How do I go about this…?" He arched an eyebrow, while thinking in his mind there was no way Quistis could have yet another magical answer.

She didn't reply at once. Instead, she paced about her desk for a few minutes considering a thoughtful response. "You've done nothing worthy of begging on your knees, so be sure to keep your dignity, however apologizing at the beginning would be the best motive. Once Rinoa knows you're sincere she'll most likely expect an explanation, this will be your chance to update her on all that you've kept from her." At once Quistis looked and met eye view with Seifer and gave him a stern look, "Whatever you do, **do not lose your temper**!"

Quietly she returned to her desk watching Seifer squirm in anger as he squinted his eyes bitterly. "I do not lose my temper." He said sternly.

A laugh escaped Quistis; before it reached a very high volume, she halted and nodded. "Very well, anyways I think you have enough on your plate today. Why don't you go speak with Rinoa and I'll see you after class tomorrow."

'''''''''''''''''''''''''

"You've done very well Selphie! Just for a tease, let's try to see how much you can get phonetically." Edea said as she watched over Selphie's shoulder. However, Selphie stayed quiet hoping Edea would clarify. A moment later she continued, "Now I'll say a word and I want you to write it as it sounds."

Selphie nodded now understanding. She held her pencil tight over her paper, which had notes of her work written all over it. For hours, they had studied relentlessly, but Selphie felt even more excited to continue.

"First word, Trabia."

It was a slight cheat on Selphie's part; living in Trabia she'd seen it written several times. She did however, stop and think a moment of the sounds. Carefully she wrote it letter by letter as it sounded. _Trabia_

"Good job Selphie," Edea smiled, "Next word Galbadia"

This was slightly more difficult, since Selphie actually had only heard of the powerful country that controlled the western world. She closed her eyes and repeated the word, as the sounds matched together, she wrote slowly _Galbadya. _

"Very close Selphie, however dear it's similar to Trabia. The "i" makes the "ee" sound. Other than that, you would have been correct. Now to the last one for today, it's difficult, are you ready?"

"Yes ma'am!" Selphie replied promptly and proudly.

"Alright, Irvine." Edea said slowly allowing her tongue to have time to pronounce all the letters.

Selphie didn't even bother to think about it, immediately her hand went to work and wrote out _Irvy._

Edea looked at it oddly and spoke hesitantly, "Not quite dear. It's Ir**vine**, there's an N at the end. There's also a silent E, but that part isn't your fault." She paused and looked to the clock and sighed, "Well I've kept you for quite some time. You go on now, don't forget to read some tonight and I'll keep you informed if I find a teacher to teach you how to fight now."

With a glance at the box still carrying the brand new knunchuks, Selphie nodded sadly. Her heart fell realizing it may be days even weeks before she could learn to use it. According to her schedule with Edea, they wouldn't cover fighting until next month. If Matron couldn't find a teacher then she'd have to wait until they reached there themselves. She stood up and carefully stuck the box under her arm. Edea wished her goodbye and Selphie waved farewell as she exited.

As Selphie exited the elevator and walked down the long stairway she looked over her writing practice, she'd been working on with Matron for hours. A hint of pride bubbled within her. She folded it carefully and slipped it inside her weapon's box.

''''''''''''''''''''''

"And I said, 'You don't own me! I can talk to whoever I want!' and I stormed off. I was just so mad! I mean who is he to act like that with me?"

Irvine sat at the corner of the lunch table a bit bored from listening to Rinoa ranting off for the passed half hour about Seifer and someone named Squall. There was only one advantage to her being so preoccupied; she didn't notice that Irvine didn't show up in class. While Rinoa vented off about her terrible boyfriend, Irvine copied his notes taken by Balamb Garden's best academic student, his truly, Rinoa Caraway.

"Irvine, why are you copying my notes?" Rinoa asked halting from her breathless speech.

"When do I not copy your notes?" He asked bluntly. Rinoa shrugged and continued to verbalize her every thought and emotion.

At that time, two people entered the cafeteria. Although, Rinoa was busy informing Irvine of her oh-so-terribly-dramatic life her eyes flittered around the room as they fell upon one of the newcomers. Squall silently walked through the cafeteria holding a simple sandwich he must've earlier bought from the cafeteria. "Uh," She paused and fell silent. Irvine, busy copying notes didn't notice regardless. "I-I'll talk to you later Irvine. See you tonight." She said quietly.

"I'm keeping your notes!" He called after her.

Rinoa waved her arm at Irvine letting him know she'd acknowledged his voice as she skimmed through the crowds. She ducked and dodged until she found herself face to face with Squall in a crowded room. "Ah hah!" She said slyly.

"What now?" Squall said as he palm faced.

"Why were you so rude to me this morning?" Rinoa put her hands on her hips and leaned in.

"Whatever, I just want to eat." He looked around and scouted for an extra table, "Mind leaving me alone till then?"

"Yes I do mind! In fact I shall join you and stick with you until you answer all my questions." Rinoa declared stubbornly. Squall shook his head and ignored her while he pushed through the students to a seat at a table. Close behind was Rinoa who sat herself right beside him watching him intently as he ate.

"Do you have to do that?" Squall asked her between a swallow. Rinoa nodded although said nothing. Her eyes softened to a more humorous glance but she sat her ground stubbornly as ever. "Fine, do what you want."

_I will!_ Rinoa thought to herself smugly as she sat straight.

''''''''''''''''''''''''

The second of two people to enter the cafeteria was Selphie. Still with her weapon tucked under her arm, she smelt the aroma of cooked food. Her mouth water as she looked at the long lines that ran throughout the room. Once in her life Selphie went to a soup kitchen back in Trabia, the soup was cold and not filling, and she recalled she'd waited in a line for hours.

There was a large possibility of whatever happened at the soup kitchen would happen again here. She sighed and walked passed the lines to rows of tables with various students talking, eating, and doing homework. Her eyes scouted through the crowds as it fell on the familiar face of Irvine. Immediately, she rushed over to him.

"Irvine!" She called as she approached him.

Hastily, Irvine shot his head up and faced Selphie who cheerfully came towards him. He smiled without voluntary thought. "Hey Selphie! What's up?"

A beaming smile was across her face as she laid the slender wooden box upon the table. "Look at what Matron gave me! Isn't it great?" Her feet pivoted out of excitement as her eyes danced watching Irvine carefully open the lid and reveal the shiny knunchuks inside.

"Knunchuks? Wow they look really cool, what model is this?" Irvine pulled the thick sticks out and observed a small engraving at its base, "Flail a beginners edition basically." He returned his view to Selphie who'd just taken a seat. "Well that's something good for you."

Selphie looked at him curiously, "Do you use those?" A hint of suspense lingered in her voice.

Irvine shook his head returning the weapon to its carrier, "Ah no, I'm a gun man. Rinoa though tried using these. Didn't work out for her but she lectured me all about them. We trained for awhile back in Galbadia Garden but she just couldn't get the hang of it, so she tried a few others." His eyes caught a slip of white paper still in the box, and gently he plucked it out. "That's most students, it's usually not the first weapon you pick up. Some people just hold one and know it though. That's how I was." He unfolded the paper and looked at the writings inside.

"Oh that was my writing practice." Selphie explained as she observed Irvine's curious face.

"Irvy?" He asked with a small chuckle, "Were you trying to spell my name?"

Nervously, Selphie twiddled her fingers and blushed. "Yeah I forgot the N. I know silly, and kind of dumb—"

"I love it." Selphie, taken aback, noticed Irvine smiling widely. He leaned in, "I really like it. You gotta call me that from now on." He winked and Selphie blushed. "But," He added, "I want to call you something funny too."

"Whatcha mean?" She asked.

Irvine wrote Selphie's name with his finger against the cafeteria table, "Selphie… let's see you took an N out of my name so I'll take a letter out of your name. How about the L? Yeah the L!" He looked back to her jollily, "From now on you're Sefie!"

"Alright Irvy," She giggled agreeing on the accord.

"Yo Kinneas!" A booming voice called. Both Selphie and Irvine turned towards to see a blonde with a black tattoo searing down one side of his face approaching them equipped with a lunch tray of a few hotdogs.

"Hey Zell," Irvine greeted.

Zell took a seat at the table and looked at Selphie. She returned his gaze oddly. The two watched each other in silence both asking themselves where they'd seen the other. At the same moment they jerked back realizing at once, "You're the person from the library!" They shouted simultaneously.

Irvine raised an eyebrow, "Oh this is the girl? Well for one her name is Selphie. Anyways, so Selphie when are you going to start practicing with your new Flail?"

Selphie ignored Zell and returned to her attention to Irvine. She peered down sadly, as she relayed Edea's words, "I don't get to learn for a month unless Matron can find me a teacher."

With a chuckle Irvine pressed his fingertips at his chest, "Well hell, I can teach ya!" Selphie looked at him in wonder and in shock. "No really I can! I watched Rinoa and had to help her, we had to teach ourselves. I can't do anything fancy but that's something up to you anyways. I can teach you the basics."

"Really!" Selphie squeaked nearly jumping to her feet, "When?"

"Right now if ya want." Irvine tipped his hat and leaned back.

Selphie jumped to her feet and danced tip-toe to tip-toe. "Tee-hee, let's go!" She paused and looked down as she rubbed her stomach.

"Oh you hungry?" Irvine asked. Before waiting for a reply, he snatched one of the couple of hotdogs on Zell's tray. "Here ya go, come on we're burning sunlight." He put an arm around her and led her away leaving Zell aghast.

"Dude you just took one of my hotdogs!"

'''''''''''''''''''

After eating, Squall silently walked into the halls with Rinoa still following him. "So what is it you wanted to know exactly?"

Rinoa, who'd been staring off into the distance for quite some time shook her head and faced Squall. "Wow, you spoke!" To respond, Squall arched an eyebrow. "No, it's just you don't talk much." She giggled and sighed, "Sorry I didn't mean to be rude." She cleared her throat and smiled, "Well since you mention it, I did want to know why you were so mean this morning."

Squall crossed his arms and looked away, "It's complicated."

Rinoa latched one arm and grasped her other arm's elbow. "Well you can try to tell me. I won't say anything." She laced her arms together and tilted her head. "I mean you do have a mouth for reason. You're so darn quiet."

Still with his arms crossed and head turned away Squall shrugged. Rinoa carefully leaned in and peered at him. "Come on, I waited in silence this entire time."

"Go ask your boyfriend, he'll know." Squall muttered.

"Okay here's a deal then, if I ask Seifer and he still doesn't answer me then you tell me everything. Okay?"

"…Ok."

'''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine walked out of the gate into the fresh cool air of Balamb's twilight. Selphie, who found herself devouring the hotdog quickly out of hunger and excitement, followed close behind. Irvine turned to her and observed her stuffing her food down to the last morsel. "You okay Selphie?" He asked slightly disturbed. Rinoa barely ate, and no girl ever ate while he was on a date. This was defiantly a new sight.

She managed to swallow and nodded her head. "Yeah, sorry I was hungry."

A twinge of guilt twisted in Irvine's gut. Under her small clothes that still hung loosely was a scrawny figure that had only gotten scrawnier since the first time Irvine met Selphie. Her new job must've stopped putting bread on the table and there was only him to blame for that…

"Hey, how about you and me go for dinner after you practice?" He winked, "Just like we did back when I met you in Trabia."

A smile touched her lips brighter than her normal one. She nodded, "I'd love that!"

With that, he grabbed her small wrist and pulled her out of the Garden grounds to the grand fields of Balamb. Through the long blades of grass brushing against them they run. Selphie still held her box as Irvine led her into the sunset.

"Where are we going!" Selphie called out but felt her own voice lost in the wind.

At once Irvine stopped. Selphie, however, had her feet still in motion causing her to topple onto the tall figure landing them in the sea of grass and rolling through the length of the tranquil jungle.

'''''''''''''''''''''''

As Rinoa headed back to her dorm, she couldn't quite get Squall out of her head. His cool composure, his calm speech, his consistent silence…

She moved her eye view from her feet to what lay ahead. As she neared her dorm door, she noticed a figure by it. In no real hurry, she kept walking keeping her eyes glued to the figure until she was close enough to see Seifer.

In the past, no matter the situation Rinoa's stomach and heart bubbled upon one look at Seifer. Even when they would argue the only thing Rinoa wanted was to apologize and be in his arms again. Right now, she simply stared and cared very little to make haste at all.

"Hi Rinoa," Seifer said semi-cheerfully. Rinoa nodded her head with a smile to be polite as she reached out for her doorknob. As her fingers touched, the metal knob Seifer grasped her wrist. "I need to talk to you." He said quietly.

Rinoa turned her head to his. He had his view set to her hand and didn't bother to return her glance. "Okay, I'm listening." Seifer allowed her to open her door as the two walked in. The two entered and paced the room silently. Seifer stood against one wall while Rinoa sat herself at the table. She looked patiently to Seifer awaiting his speech.

Somewhat fidgeting, Seifer paced. A small groan escaped him, and finally he looked back to Rinoa who sat quietly with intent eyes on him. He stood still for a moment and just observed her, her deep brown eyes glittering in the light full of concern, her soft black hair he hadn't stroked for so long, her white creamy skin… Seifer couldn't remember the last time he simply looked at Rinoa.

"Okay, I haven't been telling you much about me," He inhaled deeply, "and that's probably wrong on my part." He looked up and saw Rinoa still looking to him intensely not saying a thing. It was almost unsettling; he'd somehow become accustomed to Quistis' who usually gave half a mind for a good portion of their chat time. "Do you have to look like that?" He snapped.

Rinoa jerked her head back, "Like what?"

Seifer threw an arm out in frustration and turned around facing the wall. "Never mind, okay anyways about my scar… the guy who gave it to me was my training partner Squall. We never really got along; we've hated each other since we were kids. I've known him a lot longer than I've known you, and believe me I haven't liked it."

"So that's why you didn't want me talking to him?" Rinoa asked quietly.

"No, not didn't want you to, I don't want you to." Seifer corrected with a growing tension in his voice.

Rinoa rose to her feet, "You've decided now to tell me all of this when it's been going on for years! Just tell me Seifer how is it fair if I became friends with him and you decide to tell me now after being with me for what is it— two years?"

Seifer approached Rinoa and securely placed his hands on her shoulders. "Please, Rinoa. I can't stand that guy and I really can't stand seeing you by him. Please stop talking to him."

It wasn't the usual desire to end a fight that burned inside Rinoa, but rather it was simple attachment that wanted Seifer back in good graces. Feeling somewhat helpless, she nodded her head obediently.

"Thanks," His usual grin swept across his face. Rinoa looked up, and managed a smile as well. A bit hesitantly, Seifer brought his face closer to hers and kissed her. As though confused by his gesture, Rinoa stood still as a log not returning Seifer's embrace in anyway. He pulled away and gave her an odd look, "You're still mad at me?"

What was so important about Squall? Rinoa knew in her heart she loved Seifer and if he asked her to give up a short relationship she had for a maximum of a few days then surely she could give it up. She shook her head, "No, sorry." A small laugh slipped her lips as she leaned her head upward.

Seifer kissed her again and this time Rinoa wrapped her arms around him and returned his kiss deeply.

''''''''''''''''''''''

After Selphie and Irvine coasted to a stop at the bank of a grassy hill, they didn't feel the need to do anything except laugh. Long and heartily they laughed out of happiness and the thrill of rolling down a comfortable hill.

Lying on their sides, the two were face to face. Irvine let his chuckles subside as he watched Selphie's chuckles finally fade as well. The sunlight on her cheek made her once pale face appear to glow. The breeze that pushed the millions of blades of grass pushed a strand of hair on her cheek. Gently Irvine returned the strand to the side of her head.

"Thanks Irvy," She giggled.

"No prob Sefie." He replied relaxing a bit. At this proximity, Irvine finally noticed the brilliance of Selphie's face. She had green eyes that shamed the grass around them and a smile brighter than the sun itself. Unsure of what he was doing he found himself inching his face closer to hers.

"That was fun," Selphie sighed as she rolled onto her back. She clumsily came to her feet and searched the ground for her box that rolled down the hill with them. "So let's practice!" She faced the ground where Irvine had rolled onto his back with a somewhat hopeless look on his face.

"Yeah, let's go." He exhaled. Slowly he returned to his feet, brushed off his long caramel coat and readjusted his cowboy hat. He waited until Selphie stood straight, knunchuks in hand. "Alright the first thing is the most important thing, stance. You gotta be really balanced but at the same time you gotta be able to step lightly."

Selphie nodded obediently as Irvine took a stance, "For being a sniper you need more balance than most since the gun kicks back a lot, so if you're not standing just right you'll fall every time you take a shot." He readjusted himself and set his legs further apart, "Now for in your case you probably want to stand more like this."

Hesitantly, Selphie spread her legs apart facing her feet in different directions. She swung side to side until she landed on her rump in the grass. She sat with her legs sticking to her sides as she looked up innocently at Irvine.

He simply chuckled and lent her a hand. As he lifted her up, with ease she looked helpless as her small feet. "I wasn't doing it right, was I?"

"Not exactly," Irvine rubbed the back of his neck. "Okay, try it again." He observed carefully as she took position. Her spindly legs began to swing once again, however this time Irvine came behind her and grasped her shoulders. "Keep on your feet at first and relaxed."

Without question, she did as she so.

"Now take one stick in each hand and hold them out horizontally."

Her arms, bent held out the knunchuks in opposing directions, horizontally.

"Okay, now throw one out, when you do that jump towards it and your goal is to catch the part you threw. Got it?"

Selphie nodded as she tightened her grip against the wooden cane. The area under her finger felt moist from sweat. Biting her lip ever so slightly, she gave one quick squeeze and thrust one baton outward. Her feet leapt and followed it. She watched it wave through the air, and quickly she gave it a small yank pulling it towards her. Her free hand went out and caught it. The fast impact of the wood hitting her hand burned.

"Great!" Irvine smiled.

Upon hearing Irvine's voice, Selphie finally herself noticed she'd just accomplished a small offensive maneuver. Despite the pain on her palm, joy swelled within her. She gathered both batons in one hand leapt up and down excitedly.

"Alright," Irvine chuckled, "you can't stop now. That's probably the most basic thing you can do. So today, you keep doing that. When you feel confident, try seeing if you can jump back to your starting position."

Selphie nodded as she took her stance and faced the sun. She squinted a bit and repeated her earlier feat. Upon catching the knunchuk in her hand, she jumped backwards only to find herself in an unbalanced state. Her little feet were on their tiptoes starting to fall backwards.

Selphie closed her eyes tightly as she began to imagine the pain of falling. Somewhere in mid-falling Irvine caught her shoulders and returned her to her feet. She turned her head back and gazed into his eyes with a look of gratitude. Somewhat oddly enough, he returned her gaze with the same look.

Giving her a slight push Irvine watched as Selphie repeated her maneuver repeatedly, occasionally tripping and in need of his rescue.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''

By the time, Selphie reentered Balamb Garden; the sun was a brazen gold and began to peter out from sight. Tired and weary from all the practice including a long walk to Balamb and back to Garden, Selphie released a heavy yawn. The Garden was quiet with very little students waltzing the foyer. Selphie stretched her arms out and let her feet carry on without her mind focusing.

Irvine hadn't joined Selphie in returning to Garden. He told her he'd come soon but since she was so tired, it'd be best if she went along without him. So long as she remained on the road, she wouldn't have to worry of any monsters. Even if there was a threat of monsters, it wasn't something Selphie was unaccustomed to.

Trabia was full of monsters and monstrous people. Happy-go-lucky as she was, Selphie had spunk and adrenalin rushes strong enough to get her away from harm. Not so much as fight anything, but escaping she'd become quite good at.

Selphie shook her head returning her mindset to the present. The hallways were mostly empty and so quiet that the only sound heard was the trickling water from the fountains and the echoing of her boots.

Without a doubt, Selphie was exhausted. However, Edea cautioned her about practicing fighting when she had other things to set her mind on. There was a book about the Sorceress war resting in her room waiting for her to polish her reading skills as soon as she arrived. The prospect rather bored her, after hours of field training nothing could quite come close to that excitement.

"You alright?" A sudden voice awoke from her thoughts.

Selphie jumped back quickly and shot her head towards the direction of the voice. A tall brown-headed boy stood before her. His eyes were wide with curiosity as he looked at her with concern. Selphie hesitantly nodded.

"You look like a zombie, you sure?" He continued.

"Y-yeah, heh," Selphie chuckled a bit as she rubbed her eyes, "just tired that's all."

"You look awful, go get some sleep." He smiled and bowed his head kindly taking his leave by turning into one of the many colored hallways.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''

Being with Seifer in a lighthearted mood was incomparable to anything in the world to Rinoa. The two of them laid on her bed relaxed staring at the ceiling. The didn't say anything, but just enjoyed the comfortable silence, the calm after the storm.

A thought went across Rinoa's mind as she propped herself up with her elbows and titled her head slightly towards Seifer. "Hey," she began with a smile across her face, "so what did you and Instructor Trepe talk about?"

A small groan escaped Seifer as he sat up and rubbed his temples. "Why does that matter?" He said irritably.

Rinoa scoffed and jerked her head back. "What is that supposed to mean? You can talk to Instructor Trepe for hours but the minute I open my mouth I've committed some crime!" She leapt up from her bed and walked sternly.

Seifer growled under his breath and followed her. "Rinoa I didn't mean it like that but I just don't want to talk about that stuff again. Besides, it's… personal."

"PERSONAL? TOO PERSONAL FOR ME?" Rinoa spun on her heels and looked Seifer in the eye. Anger pulses through her veins as she curved her eyebrows inwards. Seifer stayed silent watching her fume unsure of what to say or do. "I thought that's what WE get to talk about, personal stuff." She turned around again and knelt to the ground welcomed to the level by her large brown dog.

Her hand gently patted it between its ears as she sighed. "I get it, it's not that you don't want to talk anymore, you just don't like talking to me. So, you just have a problem with me."

"Come on, it's not like tha—" Seifer began to no avail.

"I said I understand." Rinoa rose to a standing position and walked over to her door. Quietly she turned the knob and held the doorway open. "I think you need to go." She finished quietly. Seifer squinted his eyes rebelliously and trudged out the door slamming it loudly behind him.

With Seifer gone, Rinoa miserably slid against a wall and folded in her knees. She rested her head on her thighs and sniffled slightly. Just when the hope of getting over a fight subsided another disagreement occurred. Upon hearing its master's cries, Rinoa's dog jumped to her side, nuzzling her arm softly.

Rinoa didn't have long to rest by the door, only a few minutes afterward it opened and pushed her harshly aside.

"Hi Rinoa!" Selphie said cheerily as she walked in. She looked about the room trying to locate her roommate, finally her eyes averted downward seeing Rinoa on the floor half hidden by her large brown dog. A glimmer of excitement glinted in Selphie's eyes. Most the dogs she'd ever encountered in Trabia were rabid and quite dangerous. Rinoa's dog, for the few moments that she'd actually seen it, was gentle towards most with fur so soft you could run your fingers through it all day.

She knelt to her knees and hesitantly held her hand over its back. Rinoa, noticing Selphie wasn't actually touching the dog, smiled gently. "It's okay," responding immediately to her voice, Selphie shot her head up a bit frazzled. "Really, you can pet him. He won't bite you, I promise. He only bites people I don't like." Rinoa finished with a giggle.

Reassured by the dog's owner Selphie let her hand slide over his back. She'd only felt him once before and the feeling was identical. The silky coat under her fingers felt like cream or even water. Repeatedly, Selphie lifted her hand, set at the back of the dog's neck, and slid it down his back. "What's his name?" Selphie asked finally, still stroking him.

"Angelo," Rinoa began with a grin. She rested her head against the wall and sat in nostalgia for moment. "He was goodbye gift from my mom. He was just a little puppy then."

Selphie titled her head curiously, "Goodbye gift? Where'd she go?"

"Nowhere, I left. I wanted to transfer here, to Balamb Garden. I used to go to Galbadia. I wanted to get as far away from home as I could." Rinoa explained, her voice getting softer by the word.

"Oh, do you miss your mom?" Selphie asked without thinking.

Rinoa simply shrugged, "Sometimes, that's why I love just being with Angelo. He reminds me of her. I think that was her intention." She stood up quietly and brushed herself off. "Plus, miss her or not, I'm finally away from that man."

Selphie leapt to her feet with wide eyes, "You too!?"

A bit confused, Rinoa put her arms on her hips and leaned towards Selphie. "Me too what?" Apparently her response was unfulfilling to Selphie who flushed crimson and shook her head as if to say 'Never mind!' Shrugging her shoulders Rinoa paced the room soundly and looked back to Selphie still at the front of the room observing Angelo. "So what've you been up to? Class has been out for hours."

"Oh, I was with Irvy— I mean Irvine. He was helping me out." With a smile on her face Selphie casually walked over to the rectangular study table and took a seat, "Irvine is such a nice guy isn't he?"

Rinoa raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms. "Uh, sure… say where is he right now?"

"I don't know, he just said he was busy." Selphie replied innocently.

Rinoa snorted and sat herself down as well. She knew better than anyone did when Irvine was rendezvousing about. He may make up excuses from vague to extravagant, but Rinoa could see through them all. "Irvine's a plain meany. Nice? That's definitely not the word I'd use to describe **him**." Rinoa pursed her lips together as she finished her sentence.

Selphie jumped to her feet looking almost offended, she gave Rinoa a funny looking scowl. "Irvy is a wonderful guy! He is not a meany!" She furled her eyebrows, "You're a meany!" She stopped and bit her lip awaiting Rinoa to make a rude come back.

Confused by Selphie's loyal defending, Rinoa stared in awe. She noticed Selphie began fidget uncomfortably. Slowly a smile came across Rinoa's face as she burst out into laughter. Rinoa never could understand the spell Irvine could cast on girls. She continued laughing and went into her room letting her chuckles subside.

''''''''''''''''''''''

Days went by, and soon weeks. Everyone had come accustomed to a routine schedule, and little of this scheduled time included Rinoa.

Everyday, Selphie woke earlier than most all students and headed to class. Taking no breaks, not even for lunch, she spent hours in class surpassing most detention timings. When Edea dismissed her, she would join Irvine to practice her fighting skills. After awhile of practicing, after exhaustion would kick in, Irvine would have some place to leave to and Selphie would retire for the day reading until she fell asleep.

Everyday, Seifer awoke and went to class like an obedient student. After class he'd spend two hours speaking with Instructor Trepe, often getting most of his assignments out of the way as well. After listening to matter-of-factly Quistis Trepe, Seifer found himself incredibly irritated by her annoying habit of being right. He'd spend the last hours of his day in the training center fighting and slaughtering monsters until he could barely hold his sword.

Irvine, the only person who saw Rinoa at all, went to class, studied with Rinoa for a short lunch hour, and headed out with Selphie. Between his relaxed schedules, he'd find some girl to ask out, and following Selphie's practice courses he'd go and complete his dinner affairs.

It'd been nearly two weeks of this routine. Seifer hadn't come to apologize once, Irvine barely gave her the time of day, and she didn't really know Selphie. Rinoa felt the stress pulsing through her veins. She couldn't stand it anymore! She grabbed her blaster edge and ran out of her dorm room. Without waving hello to anyone, she trudged down to the second to last hallway on the semi circle pathway.

Her footsteps echoed as the sound bounced off the green walls. Rinoa attached her blaster edge to her arm and firmly entered the training center. The smell of wet plant life swept over as she slowly walked over the mossy pathways. Sounds of unknown origins came from every corner.

A scattering sound came rushing behind her, Rinoa jumped back quickly and screamed in fright. Upon seeing it was a simple lizard crawling over some dried leaves, she laughed, brushed herself off, and relaxed. "I've been here thousands of times." She laughed and readjusted her weapon. Her posture stood much more relaxed.

A grat came and approached her hastily. Now steady mentally, Rinoa dodged its attack, summoned a blizzara, and finished it off with a few attacks. Rinoa watched with an odd sense of glee as the grat fell letting his tentacles slowly surround its dead body. The adrenalin, still fresh under her skin, replaced all stress she had. The feeling was amazing!

"No wonder boys come here so often! This is so much fun!" Rinoa clasped her hands together happily and continued jollily through the jungle environment. Usually, Rinoa would only do her mandatory practice, and occasionally joined Irvine but she never found fighting amusing. Using magic was her favorite part really.

She encountered a few more grats, and bite bug. Swiftly and easily, she took them down. Proud of her handiwork Rinoa rested against a moss-free stone and pulled out a potion for her to sip on. It'd only been an hour at most, but Rinoa had already forgotten the reason that had driven here to begin with. The joy of destroying monsters had replaced it.

While finishing the last drinks in her potion bottle, Rinoa stretched her legs out and sighed. That short break alone reminded her of anger issues. Of course, she was much more subdued thanks to all the fighting. "Stupid Seifer, why doesn't he come back and apologize!" She curled her knees in and rested her forehead upon them.

"I swear, when I see him next time I'm goi—"

A loud roar erupted from the unknown. Slightly shaken, Rinoa leapt to her feet and turned her head side to side. There was nothing in sight. Another roar sounded making Rinoa's heart race to a speed she didn't know it was capable of. Her eyes darted throughout the scene but she couldn't trace it.

Thumping, loud and thunderous thumping grew behind her. From a thicket of wilderness and trees came an enormous beast, the biggest and most vicious creature one could come by in Balamb, a T-Rexaur.

Rinoa screamed as loud as her lungs permitted, she spun around and ran with all her heart. The T-Rexaur and its giant legs caught up with her quickly. Unsure of what to do, Rinoa kept running. Every so often, she screamed helplessly and desperately out into the vast jungle.

Even if someone could hear her, how on in Hyne's name would they find her?

The T-Rexaur knelt it's head down quickly and nipped at Rinoa's leg. She cried out in pain and tripped. As she scrambled on the ground the T-Rexaur roared fiercely actually bringing tears to Rinoa's eyes. She came to her feet and gave a single moment to the T-Rexaur. In that simple moment, the T-Rexaur spun about and thrust his tail outward towards her.

The crashing blow hit Rinoa in the abdomen, threw her across the way, and landed her into a rock. She rolled to the ground groaning wretchedly. Hesitantly she looked up and watched the T-Rexaur inching closer to her, most likely to finish her. Tears spilt from her eyes as her vision blurred.

_I guess… I'm going to die now…_

----------

"The killing was the best part. It was the dying I couldn't take."

--Craig Volk

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	20. Chapter 19

_"Moshimo negai hitotsu dake kanua nara..."  
("If one of my wishes were to come true...")_

_Beautiful World  
__Chapter Nineteen_

_I guess… I'm going to die now…_

Already weakened from the T-Rexaur's blow, the lack of will and the overcoming of fear had taken Rinoa. Her body laid helplessly on the ground as her concentration faded. She couldn't keep a single thought together. Perhaps the T-Rexaur was too loud, or she was too tired, something…

Before falling completely, Rinoa heard clashing of metal. She forced an eye to stay open. She only saw blurs of colors, black, silver, and the red T-Rexaur. "Don't," She whispered now knowing how soft her tired voice was, "you'll get hurt…"

The blurs kept moving, and other colors joined the mix occasionally. Rinoa only held out for a few more minutes before she completely passed out.

''''''''''''''''''''''

Quistis shuffled through her papers, straightened her stack, and returned behind her desk. Seifer, who'd sat himself before her, sat relaxed with his legs propped up over the rim of her desk. "You look distressed Instructor." He said a sickly sweet voice.

A sigh released from Quistis as she took a seat. "I'm organizing to find out how many students we still have qualifying to take the SeeD exam. There's so many who don't make the grades to make for written exam!" She breathed out loudly and returned to a calmer posture. "How are you coming along preparing for the written exam? It's at the end of this week, you do remember."

Seifer let his feet drop as he shifted forward in his chair. "Of course, I've made it this far." He relaxed and settled his back in chair again and swung his arms resting far apart from each other. "So how's pretty boy coming along?"

"He's fine," Quistis started, she turned to Seifer curiously, "is there a reason you wish to know?"

A sly smile touched Seifer's lips; he shook his head slowly and casually. "Not at all, I just wish the best for my classmate."

Quistis was tempted to laugh, however she didn't want to give in to Seifer's ridiculing about Squall. The entire point of their conversations was to get him to stop acting so hostile towards Squall. "You'd sooner push him from a cliff, you know that."

"Of course I know that, I didn't know you did, though." Seifer said coolly. Quistis made no response; she simply shuffled through more papers and wrote names on a list. "So, when do we have to have our field exam completed by?"

"Whenever you like, just so long as it's before you take the SeeD exam." Quistis responded not evening looking up from her paperwork.

Seifer arched an eyebrow not content by Quistis' verbal response and lack of eye contact. "What is the field exam exactly?"

"It's exactly as it says, an exam testing your field skills rather than book knowledge. You are to attain a G.F. from the local Fire Cavern, there is hundreds of fire Guardian Forces there, and that's never an issue. You are to utilize all battle knowledge you know to find a Gaurdian Force, and defeat it to a point that it will join you, all this is to be completed under a set time limit. In addition, students who take along their instructor for support do not have points docked." Upon finishing her speech, she looked up and politely grinned, "I take it you plan on going soon?"

Content that he'd finally received Quistis' attention, Seifer relaxed back in his chair. He smirked and turned his head away casually, "I was thinking about it, it's no big deal."

Quistis squinted her eyes irritably. "It **is** a big deal, it's a major requirement for your exam!"

"That's not for awhile though." He said coolly. "The SeeD exam could be weeks from now." Seifer returned his feet to a cross position onto Quistis' desk.

Although Quistis was well accustomed to Seifer's lack of respect for her property, she eyed him irritably. She pushed aside her work before Seifer's feet could shift and touch it. "That statement couldn't be more untrue. Your exam is fair game to be any moment after the grading of the written exam. You should complete it as soon as possible."

Seifer shrugged casually, caring very little for the subject at all. "Sure, sure." He spouted as he turned his neck cracking it.

"How's this? Once you pass your written exam, I'll personally take you to complete your field exam. It's only a few days from now."

"Who said I needed an instructor's assistance? Save your precious attention for someone who needs it, instructor." Seifer said arching an eyebrow in an arrogant matter.

Quistis laughed gracefully, "Don't worry I'm not doubting your strengths by any measure. Consider it a push against procrastination. Also, I'm known to be a good luck charm." With that, a sly grin came across Quistis' snowy face.

Seifer held himself back from scoffing, "O-kay." He chuckled. "I'll let you handle that then instructor."

'''''''''''''''''

Rinoa awoke to familiar warmth over her body. Several cuts closed themselves up, and left a soothing feel against her skin. She moaned slightly and lifted her head. Soreness and bruises still covered some places where the T-Rexaur attacked. Blinking several times, Rinoa lifted her head to face a black covered hand in her field of vision.

"Who're you?" She said still only seeing a hand.

The hand moved away revealing Squall kneeling down before her. His normal stern face looked even stricter. His furled eyebrows and angry eyes sent a shiver down Rinoa's spine.

"Squall," Rinoa breathed out in shock, "why did you, how—"

"What is wrong with you?" Squall snapped rudely. Rinoa's eyes widened as she jerked her head back. "What were you doing playing around in here? You could've been killed. You almost did! How stupid are you?" Squall's voice had risen very loud to the point he was simply shouting at Rinoa.

Slowly Rinoa felt her eyes water, a film of tears covered until her pupil's half point. She stood up weakly and wiped her face quickly. Without saying a word or acknowledging the rest of Squall's loud rant, she began walking away through the exit of the training center.

Squall stopped his yelling and watched Rinoa limply walk through the corridor. A loud sigh escaped him as he walked over to her. "Sorry I yelled like that."

Rinoa stopped, her eyes glued to the ground. "Thanks for saving me." She said quietly as she began to walk again.

"Where are you going?" Squall asked flatly.

"What do you care!?" She snapped hastily.

Squall gave her a strange look and said nothing. He crossed his arms and looked away for a moment. Nearly a minute passed and he said not a word. "What's wrong with me? What's wrong with you! You're right I nearly did get killed but you think I feel any better with you yelling at me?" Rinoa began suddenly.

"I said sorry." Squall said finally.

Rinoa knelt on the ground and sniffed sadly, "Sorry doesn't cut it okay!" Her hand went around a chain that laced her neck. "I was scared, really scared." Tears finally left the rim of her eyes and streamed down the side of her dirtied cheeks. "I can't stand it when people yell at me." She whispered.

Squall walked closer to her sighed loudly, "Do you need some help getting to the infirmary?"

"Just leave me alone. I don't want your help." Rinoa hissed angrily.

Squall face palmed and groaned. "What do you want? I said sorry. I just thought it was stupid of you to try to take a T-Rexaur down on your own."

"Wow, you talked more than a word at a time." Rinoa scoffed sarcastically. "Anyways I don't want anything else from **you**."

With a small shrug, Squall looked on towards the exit of the training center and slowly starting walking away. The echoes of his footfalls drummed through Rinoa's ears. With each echo, Rinoa bit her lip a little more. Finally she looked behind her and watched Squall, "Wait!" she called desperately.

Just as Rinoa had shouted, Squall stopped and turned around confused.

Rinoa slowly came to her feet and stumbled towards him. She grabbed his arm and held herself close to it. "Don't leave me in here." Squall gave her an annoyed face, although she wasn't looking. He said nothing and nodded.

"I'm sorry I yelled at you, you were only trying to help." She began quietly. "I've just always hated people yelling at me." Rinoa paused and let her fingers hold the chain that went around her neck. "It reminds me of my dad, he always yelled at me. I never could stand cause of that— sorry I know you probably don't care."

Squall shrugged, "I'm not close to my dad either."

"Your mom then?" Rinoa asked hopefully.

"She died giving birth to me." He replied bluntly.

"Oh I'm so sorry." She responded in a low and sad voice.

The two exited the jungle terrain and out the long green hall. After even exiting that and arriving to the colorful main halls of Garden, Squall courteously kept walking Rinoa to the infirmary. Rinoa just smiled and said nothing to remind him she only requested him to escort her out of the training center.

"So, are you close to anyone in your family?" Rinoa began in small and hesitant voice. Squall looked away and thought for a moment.

"Just Sis." He said not continuing to elaborate.

"Your sister? What's she like?" Rinoa asked somewhat excited.

Squall didn't speak right away, he thought and stayed quite with a sullen face. Observing his response, Rinoa felt awful assuming she'd hit an emotional subject. She decided not to speak just in case Squall still intended on saying something. A moment passed and Squall finally responded, "She's always been there for me ever since I was born."

"That's so sweet, I've never had any siblings. It must be nice, the closest I've gotten to that is Irvine." Rinoa laughed thinking if anyone was unfortunate enough to have a brother like Irvine Kinneas.

"Yeah, I guess." Squall said. He let that be the end of the conversation. The two walked the rest of the way in silence. They stopped at the entrance of the first colored hall. Rinoa let go of Squall's arm and smiled.

"Thank you, Squall." She said bashfully.

"Don't worry about it." He said in his normal monotone voice. With that, Squall turned around and proceeded down his own way.

''''''''''''''''''''''''

Selphie walked down the cerulean hallway letting her feet fall slowly after the other. After training with Irvine, Selphie was always exhausted. Through the two weeks, however she'd been acquiring stamina and didn't collapse afterwards anymore.

In fact, in the simple two weeks Selphie had come to live in Balamb much had already changed about her. Her face was full, making some realize how gaunt she was before. The clothes that used to hang off her finally fit her, they were still the smallest sizes available, but it finally suited her. She'd become more lean from her incessant training with Irvine and her determined studying was making remarkable progress.

Selphie spotted the marble green library at the dim end of the hall. She walked in casually and turned her head side to side. As usual, the library committee stood huddled around the main desk, and the study tables around the room were only partially full of students.

She ignored the library committee and walked down the aisles of shelves observing the titles written along the spines of countless books. Her fingers strummed against them as she walked. With her eyes glued to the titles her fingers passed, Selphie didn't notice walking right into another student. He felt a bit startled, but Selphie completely fell on the ground.

"Are you okay?" He asked immediately holding his hand out to her. Selphie nodded and jumped up.

"All better!" She said cheerily. The guy smiled and turned away returning his attention to his book. "Oh wait," Selphie called stopping the student.

"Something wrong?" He asked casually.

"Do you know any good books to read? I just finished mine and I don't know anything else to try. What do you think?" Selphie smiled and tilted her head.

The student closed his book and folded them in his front. "Well, I don't know how to narrow it down. You're really vague, tell me something you're interested in."

"Anything!" Selphie peeped excitedly.

He laughed kindly and stroked his chin, "Well I just finished a book. It's called the Legend of Gilgamesh." Selphie, wide eyed in wonder, turned to him awaiting him to continue. The student stood proudly and in a hushed but narrating tone began to explain the book.

"You see rumor has it that Gilgamesh is the savior of fallen heroes. He's a demi-god so he has amazing powers and is invincible. One guy, the main character, decided that strong as Gilgamesh was he was nothing more than a simple G.F. that one could attain. The entire book he tries to capture Gilgamesh with crazy and outlandish plans."

"Does he capture him?" Selphie asked anxiously, her hands fisted with excitement.

The student laughed again and smiled at Selphie, "Well why don't you read it? Here I'll help you find it." He led Selphie down the aisles passing several shelves and countless books. "By the way," He said as he kept walking, "I'm Nida."

"I'm Selphie." Selphie said jollily.

A few minutes later, Nida stopped at a shelf and scanned it thoroughly. His hands glided over the spines of the books until he stopped. He slid the book out of its place and handed it to Selphie. "There you go." He declared. Selphie stared down at the book in her hands. It was heavy from its many pages and thick covering. The front illustration of a cloaked figure with six arms all equipped with different swords sent shivers down her spine. "Tell me what you think about it."

Selphie held the book to her chest and nodded. "Yeah definitely!" With that, she waved goodbye to Nida and made her way out of the dark aisles. As she raced to the front desk, she overheard a conversation in the aisle closest to the front of the library.

"C'mon Jeri, you gotta help me. I really like her!"

"All men are scum bags, I'm not helping any of my friends end up with one of your kind."

"What the hell did I do!?"

"Okay, fine today you didn't do anything but eventually you will. Then what? Then it's poor Amy sitting in her room alone with a stupid goodbye letter in her hands quoting her favorite book even though she **thought** you were the one. Ugh, men utterly disgust me. Zell I want no part in your shenanigan."

Selphie could her the echoes of someone's shoes growing louder until a female student appeared from the aisles. She had long black hair tied up with two locks of hair on her shoulders, her face sharp and stern. After she passed the aisle, a miserable groan emitted from the hall. Curiously, Selphie peeked between the bookcases and saw Irvine's roommate Zell bent over shaking his head sadly.

"Hi there!" She greeted in a bubbly tone. Zell stood straight and looked her way. With a small shrug, he lifted his hand and managed to give a wave to her.

Zell made his way through the dimness of the shadowed aisle to the main room of the library. "Hey," He said flatly. His eyes glanced over to where Jeri had come, rejoining the rest of the library committee. With a sad look on his face he turned back to Selphie, "so what's up?"

Selphie looked at him with an odd face, "You look awful." She replied bluntly.

"Yeah, I bet I do." He said dully. A loud sigh escaped him as he hung his head. "I guess I'll catch you later." Slowly he began to walk away.

"Why do you look like that?" She called before Zell could walk more than a few steps away. His back jerked straight as he looked back with an odd glance at Selphie. A bit embarrassed, Selphie locked her hands behind her back and looked side-to-side avoiding eye contact. "I meant uh— you look kinda sad, why?"

Zell groaned, "It's nothing you could understand."

Pouting, Selphie furled her eyebrows, "Why do you think that?! Matron says I'm pretty smart." She put her fisted hands to her sides and looked Zell in the eye. "Go on tell me what's up."

"Pretty smart huh?" Zell arched one eyebrow and observed the frustrated creature. "Irvine must've had a blast with you." He mumbled under his breath. Selphie, who apparently hadn't heard him, straightened up still giving him a serious angry look. "Okay," Zell began while rubbing the back of his neck; "it's that girl over there." His hand raised and carefully one finger pointed at the library committee girl standing behind the main counter, her brown hair collected into a single braided ponytail.

A whiff of déjà vu swept over Selphie as she remembered what happened a few weeks ago. The last time she'd come to the library that girl amongst her friend giggled embarrassedly about how to approach Zell, and on the other hand Zell was to nervous to make a good approach to them. Immediately upon realizing this, Selphie giggled loudly.

"What are you laughing about?" Zell hissed starting to blush as the committee girls began to look his way.

Happily, Selphie gripped her book and rushed over to the committee's counter. She stamped her book onto the counter's surface and winked at the committee member with the braided hair. "Hey you!" She called out.

Only a few feet away Zell watched in horror as he could already predict what Selphie was going to do. He stood frozen in shock as the pictures before him started slowing down. The committee member he had dreamt of for so long luxuriously walked towards Selphie with a cheery smile and look of question. Selphie grinned widely and started to speak. "NO!" Zell shouted as he ran up to the counter.

Both girls looked at Zell with blank expressions as he leapt to the counter and slammed his fists down. The library girl started blushing as soon as she acknowledged whom he was. She pushed some hair behind her ear and beamed. "Hi Zell, i-it's nice to see you."

Zell shot his head towards the girl and ducked cowardly facing the cover of Selphie's book. "Amy, h-hey. Er what's up?" Confused at Zell's spontaneous reaction Selphie stood back and watched the two and their awkward conversation.

"N-nothing much, you know, uh just books and s-stuff. What about you?" Amy asked while her fingers fiddled along her ear despite the fact all the hair available to be pushed had been.

Zell gulped and raised his head, "Y-yeah same here. Studying for that e-exam, I-I mean it's really important."

"Of course!" Amy said anxiously. She bit her lip and moved her hands to fiddle with the edge of the counter top. "Y-you know the library is open 24 hours now, for the exam." She eyed Zell hopefully, when he made no reply she hesitantly continued, "You could, you know, come in here and study. I-I might be here covering a shift. I c-could help you. I mean w-with whatever."

Now, Zell looked like he was on the verge of completely collapsing. His lips slowly moved as he mentally formed some sort of reply. Before the thoughts became coherent words, Amy was gently shuffled out of the way. Jeri with her stern face took Amy's position and reached for the book Zell's fists were resting on.

"I'll take it from here Amy, you've completely forgotten someone needed to check their book out." She said sonorously. As Amy found herself cast aside she had a look of despair.

Desperately, Zell called out, "I'll come to study tonight! You know here at the library!" With that, he rushed out of the library and down the blue corridor.

Jeri handed Selphie her book and gave a dirty stare at the place where Zell was last seen before he zoomed out of the library. "Hey Amy," She said still watching, "don't worry about coming tonight. I'll cover your shifts."

Selphie held her book close to her chest and stared cautiously at Jeri. She had her hair tied back sharply pulling her forehead and thin dark eyes.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Zell sat back in his room and observed himself through a looking glass for nearly an hour. He pushed back his hair, closed and reopened the buttons of his tunic, went through various colognes to determine the perfect one, and all this only to come up miserable with his appearance.

He turned his cheek to a profile glance and ran a finger down a spiky black tattoo that framed the side of his face. Zell released a loud groan as he pushed himself from the mirror and sat back in his chair.

Whistling a cheerful tune waltzed in Irvine arm and arm with Selphie. Selphie still had the book that she'd checked out at the library clutched tightly to her chest. Upon seeing Zell, she smiled widely.

"Hey there," Irvine greeted releasing his hold on Selphie. Selphie merrily took a seat at the long study table. Irvine walked about the room and sniffed the air, "whoa, what's that smell?"

A bit embarrassed, Zell rubbed the back of his neck and chuckled softly. "Uh, just a few colognes."

"You didn't put **all** of them on did you?" Irvine snapped.

"No!" Declared Zell, rising from his seat. The two looked eye-to-eye for a moment, until Zell turned away slightly shamed. "I just didn't know what to put on."

Irvine smirked slyly, "Aw, Zell do you have a date tonight?"

With a roll of his eyes, Zell turned his cheek and back to Irvine. "No, I don't have a date."

"Whatever, I know that look. Too much cologne, you ironed your shirt, and you don't even got your fighting gloves on. Ooh classy, who's the girl Zell?" Irvine pulled up a seat beside Selphie and crossed his legs on the table.

Zell started to blush, "Seriously it's not a date! I just was— gonna go see this girl…"

"Oh Amy!" Exclaimed Selphie. She rose to her feet and tip toed over to Zell, "You said you were going to go study there tonight riiiiight?" She giggled and looked back to Irvine, "Look Irvy, he's all red!"

Zell slapped his cheeks and threw a furious glare to the pair. "Okay fine whatever! I was going to see Amy tonight. It's the perfect chance, stupid Jeri won't be there. I don't know what I did, but she's out to get me." He groaned and ran a hand through his blonde spiky hair. "Who am I kidding, there's always something in the way."

Selphie returned to her seat and thought for a moment, "Jeri? Is she the girl with black hair, and kinda scary looking?"

With a curious glance, Zell nodded.

"Oh no, Zell she said she'll be there tonight. She told Amy she doesn't even have to come. I guess she really doesn't want you to see Amy." Selphie sighed sadly and placed her hands neatly on her lap, "That's really sad."

"DAMNIT!" Zell punched the ground and rose back up slowly. "What the freakin hell does Jeri want!? Why the hell is she so bitter?"

Irvine rested his arms behind his head and used his crossed legs to push his chair to suspend on its two back legs. "Sounds to me she needs to get laid." He chuckled sarcastically.

As though a light bulb suddenly flashed on, Zell spun around excitedly. "Irvine you're a genius!" He rushed up to him happily and smiled wryly. "There's no one more perfect for the job!"

Raising one eyebrow a bit confused, Irvine exchanged odd glances with Selphie. "You want me to get this 'Jeri' off your hands?"

"Come on Kinneas, it's just one night and you know you like a challenge." Zell pleaded, almost sounding too eager.

Irvine sat up straight and came to his feet swiftly. He put an arm around Zell's shoulders and led him a few away from Selphie. "First off," he began in a small whisper, "A bitter gal asking for some attention is not a challenge, and second off mind keeping my private life on the down low? I don't really want Selphie hearing about it."

Zell looked over Irvine's arm to Selphie who now sat content with her book opened to the firs few pages. "What do you mean? Are you two dating?"

"No." Irvine hissed, "It's just we're friends and I don't want her thinking anything about it." _Or rather, judge me for taking her job career as a pleasurable pastime_, Irvine thought to himself guiltily. "Anyways, I'll come to the library tonight no problem. It's the least I can do. One more hint for you, don't put anything with a scent on. Anymore aroma and you'll knock every person in a 3 mile radius out, and I don't mean in a good way."

Irvine released his grip on Zell and turned back to Selphie. "Come on Sefie, let's get outta here." As Selphie jumped to her feet Irvine swept her up in his arms. Laughing loudly and cheerfully, Selphie held on to Irvine's shoulders and waved goodbye to Zell.

''''''''''''''''''''''''

Still in Irvine's strong arms, Selphie began to relax. Irvine whistled a merry tune and looked down the hall not noticing Selphie's very concentrated stare.

Being in Irvine's arms was comforting, and gave Selphie a safe feeling. Almost like it was back in Trabia, when Mr. Devin first held her and took her to the hospital. Somehow, the situation here differed slightly. A strange bubbly feeling overcame Selphie. Her stomach wouldn't settle and no matter how she tried nothing would change her view from her Irvine's face. Upon her lips ran a smile of happiness's truest sincerity.

The situation was different, and so was the feeling, but the moment passed after a memory of Mr. Devin swept over Selphie's mind. A fusion of guilt and fear twisted in her gut.

"Well look who it is," A vaguely familiar voice called.

Selphie, whose train of thought already broken, shot her head forward to see the slender, seductive, and stunning Scarlet. Scarlet's lips moved slowly to a slow wry smirk. She rested one hand getnly on her hip and leaned on one leg.

"Scarlet," Irvine replied, taken aback, "what're you doing here?"

With a push against her soft midnight black curls Scarlet straightened her posture and leaned her head forward, "Just taking a walk of course. Nothing special." Her long thing eyebrow arched as she eyed Selphie, "and you?"

Irvine returned Selphie to her feet, "leaving." He finished for her. He gave Selphie a small push and said quietly, "Go ahead without me I'll be right there." Confused, but compliant, Selphie nodded her head and trotted away hastily. "Okay, what's with you Scarlet?"

"Can't I come see you?" Scarlet asked in a matter of fact tone.

"No, you can't. Now what's the big idea of you showing up here?" Irvine demanded sounding a bit tense.

"Irvine baby, I'm not here to interrogate you." She tilted her head and thinned her eyes slyly. Of course, Irvine was not convinced by her answer. "Oh fine I am curious about who **she** is."

"Selphie's a friend, I told you that." He stated still tense.

Scarlet sighed in a soft humming tune, "Fine, whatever I don't really care about her. I came to tell you I'm tired of our little flings. I'm ready to commit for something more," She crossed her arms and gave Irvine a serious look, "I want a real relationship and not just a weekly night."

Irvine scrunched his nose, "What are ya joking? I'm not in any place to have a relationship. Stop talking like that Scarlet we got a good thing let's not mess it up, eh?"

"I'm not joking Irvine." She continued in a monotone voice. Her hand went and grasped one of Irvine's long arms; "I like being with you a lot, and don't tell me you don't like being with me. I'm not asking for your answer right this instant, but," She raised his arm to her chest, "I mean it, no more weekly routines." She released his arm and walked away slowly let her hip glide with each movement of her legs.

Slowly Irvine continued down the hall, a short walk, to Rinoa and Selphie's dorm. Without knocking, he turned the knob and walked in.

Selphie sat quietly with her book open flatly on the study table not even looking up for Irvine as he entered. He took a seat without saying a word still a bit preoccupied. Of course, he enjoyed the odd relationship with Scarlet, but it wasn't something he felt he couldn't live without. The lifestyle he had currently was much more appealing, that he felt right now he could not live without.

His gaze moved towards Selphie silently reading while mouthing long words every once and awhile. A grin touched Irvine's lips.

Suddenly from behind the two, the dorm room's door swung open and Rinoa walked in. A grand smile was upon her face beaming. "Hello you two!" She said excitedly.

Selphie raised her head up and winked, "Hiya Rinoa. Whatcha upto?" Irvine said nothing to her; nonetheless, Rinoa took up Selphie's conversation invitation and sat down.

"Well, if you must ask," She said with a small giggle. Her hands clasped her kneecaps as she swung back and forth on her chair, "I was in the training center today alone, and it was pretty fun unti—"

Irvine rose to his feet and straightened his cowboy hat on his head. "Sorry Rin, I'll talk to you later. I promised to be somewhere right now." He waved goodbye and stepped out of the room without another word.

Stunned by his leave, Rinoa sat silently in shock. Her joyous smile began to fall slowly until it appeared to be a frown. She let her head hang down a bit as she pursed her lips. There was never once in her life that Irvine ignored her, good times or bad. He may be too busy to show up, but once he's in front of her he doesn't completely blow her off.

"Well go ahead and finish your story Rinoa." Selphie said cheerily.

Rinoa stood up slowly and shook her head, "I'm not in the mood." Dragging her feet one step at a time, she opened her room door releasing Angelo, who'd stayed bored inside all day, and closed the door behind him.

'''''''''''''''''''''''

Sorry for the long wait!


	21. Chapter 20

_"Kimi no soba de nemurasete,"  
("I would want to sleep by you,")_

_Beautiful World  
__Chapter Twenty_

The walk from Rinoa's dorm to the library seemed like a decent time for Irvine to clear his head. Scarlet was no one he wanted to flatter with more time on his mind than necessary. Upon entering the library, Zell came and ushered him to the corner speaking in a hushed tone.

"Okay, Jeri is over there at the counter. She's supposed to be watching the library all night. It was Amy's shift today too." He explained. Irvine looked over Zell's shoulder and observed the brunette at the checkout counter.

Despite her slightly angrily scrunched eyebrows, Jeri's fair skin and raven black hair struck Irvine with a hint of déjà vu. "I think I know her," He said softly. Thinking quietly to himself, he kept his sight on Jeri and continued to concentrate on where he may have seen her. The more one knows about their prey the better they are at striking them.

"Oh damnit, you haven't already slept with her haven't you!" Zell hissed almost whining in a desperate voice.

Irvine's eyes widened, "Oh that's right, I did. It was back when the library was just opened later than normal." He readjusted his hat and smiled slyly.

"Freakin hell, now I'm never going to see Amy."

"You underestimate me," Irvine said coolly. He patted Zell's shoulder and swept passed him straight to Jeri. Zell watched in confusion and said nothing deciding if Irvine had a death wish, he'd not be the one to stop him.

Still holding his head high Irvine approached the counter and drummed his fingers on the surface. "Excuse me," he said softly, "I need some help with finding a book. It's about junction of status magic."

Jeri turned around and sighed, her gaze set to the floor and her arms full with books needing to reshelf. Slowly she lifted her head up and met eyes with Irvine. Almost instantly, the books from her arms collapsed causing a loud crash on the marble floor. "Y-you!" She squeaked.

Irvine blinked opening his eyes widely, "Jeri? Is that you?" He said shocked.

"Don't act like that, you know perfectly well who I am!" She snapped coming forward with an incredibly irritated glare.

Now leaning against the counter top, Irvine's shocked glance melted into a dreamy smile. "Wow, it's really good to see you again. You look great."

Jeri stamped her foot and crossed her arms sternly across her chest. "Don't you dare act like you don't know why I'm mad Irvine! I can't believe you, you scum! I really liked you." She turned around and muffled a small sniffing she'd started.

Irvine hastily rushed behind the counter and rested his hands on Jeri's shoulders, her back still turned to her. "Jeri I know, I did something awful. I really liked you too. It's just—" He sighed quietly and turned his head, "never mind, you don't care." His grip on Jeri's shoulder's slipped slowly and easily sliding down her back. He turned around and took not even a step before Jeri's voice stopped him.

"Wait, I do care." She said, a bit of hesitance echoing in her voice.

With a long look of guilt, and sadness Irvine turned and looked up to meet Jeri's view. "Listen, being a SeeD is everything I've ever wanted. Having a relationship is something I don't think I can handle with all the training, an-and stress." He closed his eyes slowly and breathed in gently, "I really liked you and I shouldn't have said anything to you when I knew I wasn't in a position to do anything serious. I'm really sorry." Once again, he began to make way to leave. A moment he paused himself and turned around, "I know this is too much to ask but one kiss? You know, for old time's sake?"

Jeri now framed with a face of guilt and longing, shook her head to exit her daze. "Uh, I mean, well why not?" She exhaled a bit relieved and came closer to Irvine stepping over her mess of books. Irvine wrapped his arms around her and moved in touching her lips ever so softly. He stood there still, allowing her to feel his breath on her. Gently he kissed her as his grip around her tightened.

Without knowledge of her actions, Jeri returned Irvine's embrace and pushed herself as close to him as she could possibly get. Her arms went around his neck as she leaned her head upwards to reach his.

In the middle of their heated moment, Irvine broke away and breathed heavily. "Sorry, I know you're busy I'll leave." Jeri immediately grasped his hand.

"Wait," She said desperately, "I was just covering for a friend. I'll let her know I'm unavailable." Jeri's eyes sparkled with a bit of excitement, and her face had melted away any sign of the bitterness she showed only minutes earlier.

Irvine smiled his normal wily grin, "Well if you're free for the night, mind if I… hang out with you for a little? A small study break?"

Still tightly holding Irvine's hand, Jeri rushed to the library phone and punched a few digits. A moment later, she urgently spoke to the other line, "Amy? Hey I can't stay. Hurry up and get over here I'm leaving." Without waiting for Amy to reply, Jeri returned the phone on its holder and pulled Irvine from behind the counter. Hastily the two rushed out of the library.

Still in the corner hidden between shelves, Zell leaned against a wall his arms crossed and mind in wonder. Never did Zell condone Irvine's behavior, but he had to admit, the man had his ways and did not fail.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

_"Alright Seifer Almasy, I know you've been super busy preparing for the exams coming up so I'm not going to bite your ears off." Rinoa smiled and pushed some hair behind her ear, "Just promise me we'll spend more time with each other after this week? I haven't seen you in so long."_

_Seifer made a small grin and nodded, very relieved that Rinoa did not intend to start drama with him. "Of course Rinoa," He wrapped his arms around her and leaned in to kiss her. Rinoa replied shortly only to jerk her head back a fraction of a second later._

_"I'll see you later, Seifer—! I forgot I promised to meet Irvine up, I'm late." She scurried out of the dorm without another word. _

The next dayduring his session with his Instructor,Seifer sat quietly across Quistis' desk. He looked blankly over his practice test and groaned irritably, the memory of Rinoa droning repetitively through his head.

"Something on your mind, Seifer?" Quistis' soothing voice asked softly.

He looked at her with dull sigh and crossed his legs, propping his feet on the end of Quistis' desk. "Maybe," he said lost in thought. Exhaling loudly again he stared the ceiling, as blankly as the test he let glide to the floor.

With a graceful look, Quistis pushed aside her work and faced Seifer. "Well if it's bothering you, perhaps we should discuss it."

"It's not really your business." Seifer replied bluntly.

With one hand over her mouth, Quistis started to giggle. "Alright I understand, but I'll gladly listen even if." She laid her hands flat on the surface of her desk and patiently.

"Instructor," He said quietly turning his gaze to her, "you laugh at the most random things? It's starting to bug me because I don't understand why!"

She hushed her giggles and pushed aside a lock of hair resisting against her shoulder. Her head titled ever so slightly as she glanced at him with a sense of tranquility in her blue irises. "It's trivial, but you remind of me of someone— only sometimes that is." With that, Quistis briskly rose to her feet and moved around her desk closer to Seifer. She crossed her arms and leaned her waist along the side of the desk. "Just tell me, what's on your mind. I'm here to help you Seifer."

_You're here cause' you're paid_, Seifer thought bitterly. Insincerity ranked on the top of the things he despised most. That factor alone was probably one the few reasons his and Rinoa's dissolving relationship still existed. They rarely spoke these days, and even when they did, he never was interested. However, her loyalty and sincere care for him still kept him somewhat attached to her. "I realize your purpose, instructor," He began in a sweet voice, "but it's unnecessary for you to involve yourself in issues that don't concern you."

Quistis almost looked insulted by Seifer's response. She pursed her lips and turned away. "If you feel like that, very well." Slowly she returned to her place behind the desk and returned her facial expression to a polite smile. She rested her hands calmly on the flat surface of her desktop. "I completely understand." With a kind glance Seifer's way she concluded with, "I think we're done for the day. I wish you luck on your written exam tomorrow."

Superficially, that phrase stung. He absolutely despised people wishing him luck. Did they not believe he had the smarts to do it without luck? He didn't need luck, he never did. However, instead of retorting back with a sneering comment he felt awkwardly affected by Quistis' reaction to his remark. Without arguing, he stood and took his leave, a hint of guilt in his mind.

Was the offense she took a symbol that she truly cared? Was she really being sincere towards him? Seifer shrugged it off as he exited the classroom leaving Instructor Trepe to her thoughts.

''''''''''''''''''''''''

Zell entered carrying a happy tune on his tongue. He opened his dormitory door loudly with a bang discovering a disheveled Irvine inside. "Hey Kinneas, did you go to class?" He snorted.

Irvine clicked with his tongue and paced the room quietly. "Did you?" He asked in a tone motioning he really didn't care much either way.

The wide grin on Zell's face implied that he had much more fun than a classroom could ever provide. "Kinda," He said finally with his cheeks taking on a blooming red. His hand went behind his head as he rubbed his blonde hair in a bashful stance. Although he wanted Irvine to ask him about his night with Amy, he knew that Irvine had been with too many women to care about his one. Instead of waiting for Irvine to ask, Zell blurted out the information voluntarily. "I was with Amy the whole day! We both skipped classes, it was awesome. I've never skipped class!" He rushed to Irvine and placed on his very strong hands on his shoulder, "Thanks a lot man."

Even though Zell's assumption of Irvine's interest in Amy was accurate, Irvine was still pleased to see Zell so happy. At least he knew this would stop Zell from judging him so much, or stop him from showing so much resentment because of it at the very most. He shined a genuine smile and took a seat, motioning with his arm for Zell to sit down and continue.

Not hesitating to hold back, Zell excitedly jumped on the chair beaming with a joyous grin. His enthusiasm was refreshing; usually he only worked up for one thing, fighting. This new motivation to get 'pumped up', as Zell would call it, felt breezy and enjoyable. "Well we talked all night, and she was so cool about helping me study. I feel so ready for tomorrow's exam." He punched his hand into his fist and smiled proudly. "I even worked up the nerves to ask her to join me to the inauguration ball if I make SeeD."

Irvine raised an eyebrow, piqued with interest. "What'd she say to ya?"

"Yes!" Zell leapt from his chair and into the air, landing loudly in a squatting position. "This is the best day, and I have you to thank. Thanks again, man. If Jeri was there, I'd never been able to hang with Amy."

For a moment Irvine forgot about Jeri, last night was a blur. After their small affair, Irvine said he had to return to studying, and blindly Jeri believed him. In honesty, he went back to his room and let himself sleep. He woke up late, purposely missing class, and went back and forth from sleeping and studying.

Zell excitedly picked up one of the many books that littered the dorm and trotted into his room to 'study'.

With Zell gone, Irvine went back to his thoughts. He didn't enjoy thinking too hard about things out of his control but a few things flashed in and out. There was Scarlet and her ultimatum, Rinoa and the fact that he'd basically been avoiding her, his test he'd been working so hard for, and of course Selphie whom he'd not seen and was starting to miss.

Irvine looked at himself through a mirror hanging on the wall. He flattened his hair down and without combing it once he stuffed on his black cowboy hat, patted his clothes, and walked out of the room.

As he closed the door behind him, he saw Seifer walking down the hall towards a familiar route. Obviously towards Rinoa's room, Irvine assumed. Not alarmed by Seifer or at all wavered at sight of him, Irvine, from a distance followed Seifer's tracks towards Rinoa's room.

When Irvine had come close, he heard a thunderous shout from Rinoa's room and loud slam of the door. Seifer marched from the dorm and stomped back towards Irvine. When he met eyes with the cowboy he halted and angrily addressed him, "You!"

"Me?" Irvine asked sarcastically never taking Seifer's aggression seriously.

"Where's Rinoa? Is she in the cafeteria? Really?" He interrogated sounding fiercer by the word. Seifer didn't actually yell but the anger emitted from his voice nonetheless.

Irvine cocked his head back and shrugged with his arms out, "Geez, I came here to see her myself. You tellin' me she isn't here?" He rubbed the back of his neck and sighed.

Not knowing if Irvine was serious or not, and also not caring, Seifer swept passed him and headed away back towards the exit of the dormitory's hall.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Rinoa never received the chance to tell Irvine about her near death experience, of which Squall had saved her. Selphie, bubbly as normal, would willingly listen but Rinoa didn't think she'd get to much joy to tell her.

When the next morning arrived, she woke happy and excited to tell Irvine still. The happy excitement inspired her to even track down Seifer who'd been ignoring her as well. Even though Seifer would never let Rinoa tell her what seemed to be an exhilarating tale, she nonetheless greeted him with a heart-warming smile.

"Just promise me we'll spend more time with each other after this week? I haven't seen you in so long." She pleaded from him.

Seifer's kind and loving response was all Rinoa needed to replace Squall from her mind with him. She happily left for class, still incredibly excited to tell Irvine about the adventure she had in the Training Center, only Irvine didn't come to class. While the class went over objectives worth reviewing, Rinoa had only too much time to let Seifer slowly ooze out of her mind to be replaced with the heroic thoughts of Squall.

Somewhere between the several times she'd replayed the event in her head, she started to feel a bit guilty about spending so much mentality on Squall. If Seifer had an inkling of it, he'd never forgive her.

For the passed weeks, it seemed, only Squall had been paying her any attention. He spoke little and didn't show interest to listen even more, but regardless he was **with** more than Irvine and Seifer were. It was only natural she was starting to warm up to him. Would it bother Seifer that much if she made another male friend?

_So long as he doesn't know it should be fine_, Rinoa thought to herself, _it's not like I'm really doing anything wrong. When Seifer spends more time with me, I'll forget about him. At least he'll spend some time with me though. Even Irvine has been away for a while. What's he been doing? He spends a lot of time with Selphie— he never did tell me the story behind that. I wonder – _

"Ms. Caraway?"

Rinoa broke free from her conscious and stared up at her instructor. "Yes, sir?" She replied promptly but obvious to that fact she hadn't been paying attention before.

"Class dismissed, you may leave now." He said blankly.

Hesitantly, Rinoa turned her head side to side observing the empty room, save a few students gathered around the instructor's desk. She jerked slightly embarrassed and jumped to her feet. "Thank you, sir." She squeaked. With that, she jumped to her feet hastily, and shakily rushed out the door.

The entire day seemed like a blur to Rinoa. Thoughts came and went, people saying hello and goodbye barely affected her at all. She vaguely remembered the encounter with Seifer that morning, but even that seemed like distant past.

Then she saw him.

The whole room was still in a hazy swarm of colors and noise, but somehow he sat there clear. Dressed in his school uniform with his jacket opened, revealing a white shirt and thick metallic necklace, Squall sat casually and quietly ignoring the masses around him.

There was a voice in her head reminding her about Seifer's distaste, but for some reason, her feet went without her knowledge. Without any voluntary control, she went straightforward towards Squall and sat down. She blinked several times after she sat down before him in confusion of how exactly she'd come to this point. The voice in her head was now screaming for her to leave before Squall acknowledged her. Quick and demanding as the voice was, Rinoa spoke and ignored it completely.

"Hey Squall." She said in a casual cheerful tone.

Squall shook his head from the daze and heavy thought he was in and turned to Rinoa. For the first time, he wasn't frowning or disappointed to see her. Just content…

"Hi."

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

It was a common practice for students to hitchhike their way to the town of Balamb. The town was the source of entertainment for hardworking students who seldom left the grounds due to its remote location. Miles and miles away from Garden, with only one road, was the trail to town. Authorities never secured the lonesome road. The road winded and turned built strategically in a route that planned to avoid most tribes of monsters. So long as people stayed the course, nothing should happen to them.

Even if they did not stay the course, if you were as strong as Seifer Almasy, they still wouldn't be bothered.

Seifer didn't think it was wise to do what he did. Instead of keeping a cool head about Rinoa, instead of studying for the next day's exam, he went to Balamb. He didn't go to have a good time, but instead to drown his anger in a bitter drink.

Although Seifer wasn't accustomed to drinking. Rajin enjoyed it every so often, and Fujin accompanied him to beat him out of stupidity. Seifer occasionally joined. Today he was alone fuming with drunken anger. The scar that ran across his face stung and burned.

"WHO THE FUCK DOES HE THINK HE IS?!" Seifer swayed his sword clumsily in the empty fields outside of Balamb. "CAN'T FIND A GIRL ON HIS OWN SO HE THINKS HE CAN HAVE MINE?!" A blade struck the grass and crashed loudly as Seifer fell on the ground, his sword dung deep into the dirt. "Fucking bastard, that's what he is. I'll show that damn pretty boy. PUT ANOTHER SCAR ON THAT DAMN PRETTY FACE OF HIS!"

Losing his balance every other step, Seifer shoved himself messily passed the Garden's open gates. His noisy rambles echoed through the empty and desolate courtyards. The air, cold and bitter, felt so thick with tension that it could've been a full barrier. Seifer continued to throw about his gunblade without caution.

"SHOW ME THAT PRETTY FACE SQUALL! IT WON'T BE SO PRETTY WHEN I'M DONE WITH IT! I'LL DO MORE THAN LEAVE YOU WITH A PUNY SCAR!"

Still swing about his sword, Seifer stroked where Squall had too scarred him. The blunt edge of his blade swung where his fingers roughly groped. Groaning in pain, Seifer collapses on the hard floor as he moaned until he lost consciousness.

--------------------


	22. Chapter 21

_"Donna basho demo ii yo"  
__("Anywhere will do")  
__  
Beautiful World  
Chapter Twenty-One_

Instructor Trepe knew she had better things on her agenda than to personally wish good luck to a few of her students. Most of them were on their way to head to class. Her Trepies, bright and early as usual, then there was Squall who had always caught her attention, and lastly Quistis found herself outside of Seifer's dorm.

She knocked politely on the door and student she recognized well appeared before her. "Ya need something?" He asked. His voice was gruff and informal but not rude. He towered over Quistis and with his dark skin and hair, he seemed very intimidating.

"Has Seifer left for class already?" She requested her voice calm and tranquil.

"He hasn't come back all night ya know!" The student said very concerned. "Fujin and I looked all over, ya know, and we ain't found him. I think he left Garden or something!"

Quistis' eyes widened. For some unknown reason she felt like she'd lost the air in her lungs. She breathed in and regained composure. "His SeeD written exam is today," she said quietly. The student nodded vigorously to show he knew that information well. "Well if you find him before you head to class yourself, let me know. My classroom is B23." She turned sharply and walked away. Her mind raced, where was Seifer? How could he disappear on a day as important as exam day? Did he get nervous and run for it? Was in the library studying?

"**Instructor Quistis Trepe, please report to the Headmaster's office immediately!"**

Although Quistis had several things on her mind now, but Headmaster's orders took priority. As she advanced hastily towards the elevator in the front sector of Garden, a cloaked figure ushered towards her. "Instructor Trepe, disregard that message on the intercom. Headmaster Cid is in the infirmary. Go see him immediately," The faculty member shook his arms covered completely in white and maroon robes.

"Alright, thank you." Quistis said turning around hesitantly. The infirmary… what possible **good** news could come from there?

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

"What abilities are not nullified when a 'silence' is cast?" Rinoa quizzed as Irvine and her slowly walked along the hallway passing the numerous classroom of the Garden's second floor.

"Using items, and drawing magic right?" Irvine answered only semi confident.

Rinoa squinted her eyes in an irritated fashion, "No drawing." She sighed as Irvine gave her a sarcastic hopeless shrug. With a playful hit on his shoulder, she concentrated and thought of another question to ask.

"Irvy!" A very familiar voice sounded. Irvine and Rinoa paused as a small figure pushed her way through the crowd. Selphie bounced from behind a group of stressed students and waved cheerfully. She skipped towards them. A small uneven corner of a tile broke her rhythm as her torso flew forward in an ungraceful fall.

Irvine reached out and easily held Selphie from the ground with the strength in his one arm. Selphie giggled and lifted herself the rest of the way to her feet. She grinned at Irvine and Rinoa. "Irvy! You didn't tell me it was such an important day for you!" She nearly jumped in place. "I wanted to wish you luck! Matron told me you'd be here."

Rinoa, slightly annoyed with the interruption, roughly placed a hand on Selphie's shoulder. "Sorry Selphie, we're a little busy. You don't mind do you?"

Selphie's cheeks flushed red. "O-oh yeah! Sorry to bother you two!" She laughed hesitantly and with a small wave, she disappeared into the masses of students scurrying through the corridor.

"What was that for?!" Irvine snapped.

Groaning, Rinoa grabbed her elbow, tilted her head, and faced Irvine. "You can play with girls all the live long day Irvine. Seriously, I never complain about it. Right now, you need to concentrate. I NEED TO CONCENTRATE! This SeeD exam is everything to me!" She slammed her palm on her forehead. "I swear you get so goo-goo eyed whenever Selphie comes around. I get it Irvine; she's great in bed. Now can you keep it together for just a few hours?!"

Irvine now had an angry scowl on his face. "You know, I'd normally storm out on ya for something like that. Just cause' you're stressed I'm gonna let it go." He grasped Rinoa's shoulder and swiftly dragged her to a corner, decently spaced from the other students. "I know this is totally overdue," he began in a whisper, "but you need to know about Selphie."

Rinoa folded her arms, "Okay, I'm listening."

For such a delicate subject, Irvine couldn't have chosen a worse place to discuss it. He rubbed the back of his neck, "A'right… Selphie, look Rin I haven't slept with her."

Perhaps if nothing else went right that day, the reaction Irvine got from Rinoa hearing that was priceless and enough to last him a lifetime.

'''''''''''''''''''''''

"Ah Quistis, there you are." Headmaster Cid said in his normal heartwarming way.

Quistis respectfully saluted upon seeing him. Both the headmaster and Dr. Kadowaki, the doctor in charge for all injuries and medical mishaps in the Garden, stood together in front of the examining room door.

"I am terribly sorry to inconvenience you on such a busy day, but I thought it best I inform you. After all, he is your student. Also, I know you're especially fond of this one." The headmaster continued.

"Squall?" Quistis gasped taking a step forward without thought.

Dr. Kadowaki and Headmaster Cid exchanged confused glances. "Pardon me Quistis, that was an ill made joke on my part. No the student hurt isn't Squall Leonhart though. I reckon he's in your classroom right now preparing to take his exam. This morning a security guard found Seifer Almasy in syncope out in the courtyard."

Too occupied in thought to be embarrassed, Quistis brushed right passed the doctor and Headmaster Cid and hastily pulled open the curtain to the main examining room of the clinic.

Seifer laid on the examining cot in what appeared in be a restful sleep. His breathing appeared normal and his face didn't look disgruntled or stressed. Quistis advanced slowly observing him carefully. She couldn't find any new scars or obvious injuries. "Has he—" She started.

"He's been passed out cold all morning I'm afraid." Dr. Kadowaki finished for her.

Quistis nodded and looked down heaving a great sigh. As she breathed in deeply, the reeking smell of liquor filled her nostrils. _Drinking the night before the test? I didn't expect that—THE TEST! _"His exam!" She cried aloud.

Headmaster Cid nodded and entered behind Quistis, "I understand you need the credentials Quistis, however he's one pupil and you've plenty oth-"

"No, that is not my concern." She interrupted boldly. "This exam is incredibly important to him, sir you have to let him make it up. Please."

"Policy is policy Quistis, I can't make exceptions for any student." Headmaster Cid sighed and looked aside. When he returned his view to Quistis, he noticed a sincere concern. Sympathy swelled within him as he let out a breath and chuckled helplessly. "Very well Quistis, if he takes it TODAY I'll accept it to be scored with everyone else's. However you must be here to administer it to him and if the scores are turned in even a minute passed midnight I will not accept it." With that, Cid flicked his head to dismiss himself. He turned his back to Quistis, bowed his head to the doctor and exited the infirmary.

"Quistis," Dr. Kadowaki started in a stately manner, "he's not waking up anytime soon. Go to your class and I'll call you if anything happens."

Personal feelings were bubbling throughout Quistis' small body, but she nodded in reluctance and realization of her responsibility. She bowed her respectfully to Dr. Kadowaki and smiled, bestowing a silent thank and took her leave.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Upon hearing Irvine, Rinoa nearly fainted. She stumbled onto the floor into a daze. "Wow…" She uttered in confusion, "if you haven't slept with her why are you so nice to her? Are you just trying a new longer woo process?"

Irvine smiled and shook his head. He stuck his hand out letting Rinoa take it graciously. Once she was back on her feet and turned away embarrassedly, "It's a long story."

The hallways started looking less full as students were finally situating themselves into class. Most of the noise had limited itself and people still loitering were scarce.

Rinoa looked at him silently waiting patiently for him to continue.

"Okay, remember that night Seifer dared me to go to those show girls?" Irvine began in a hushed whisper.

Almost instantly, Rinoa's face transformed from its patient glance to a shocked and slightly disgusted form. "Irvine Kinneas! Is Selphie a hooker!?" She hissed.

"Rinoa!" Irvine said covering her mouth, "Keep it down! I said it was a long story!" He looked from side to side cautiously, assuring himself no one else was eavesdropping. "I'll tell you after the test."

'''''''''''''''''''''

During Selphie's lesson, Matron kept talking, but to no avail. The small brunette had her head and eye focused on her teacher but her mind wandered back and forth from thoughts of Irvine.

Did she really bother him this morning? A feeling of guilt swelled within her chest. Still, the thought of Irvine dismissing her somewhat pained her. He didn't want her there, this discomforting thought drowned in her mind all while her eyes had a blurry picture of Matron moving her lips open and close.

"Do you understand, Selphie?"

Selphie slowly turned her head and blinked softly. Although innocent and cute, her eyes looked blank and lost. "Y-yeah of course." She said in a voice a significantly lowly than her normal chipper way.

Matron sighed and sat before her. "Oh dear, I know you must be tired. Since all of the other students who took the SeeD exam today have it off how about I let you leave early?" She smiled angelically raising lightly back to her feet. She floated to her door and held it open with a comforting look, reassuring Selphie it was all right.

"Oh really?!" She squealed in excitement. She leapt to her feet and skipped merrily to the open doorway paying little attention to Matron's soft giggling. Selphie flew passed the open doorway not even paying attention to Matron waving a kind goodbye.

Matron closed the door slowly still giggling, "Oh children…"

''''''''''''''''''''''

During an exam, most all students display some sort of nervous habit. Irvine despised looking overwhelmed or anxious at any time. As he went through answering question to question, he flipped his pen in stylish manner sometimes tossing the pen into the air and catching it. His instructor was thoroughly annoyed but decided to be gracious enough to just let him do it.

Irvine stopped his panache flipping as he came to the last question. _Hit-J affects the fighter's… _The question droned in his mind repeatedly. It didn't seem like a difficult question, and even Irvine knew the answer. The stress of answering the last question on a exam confirming its completion did send jitters passed flipping a pen.

Even though only Irvine knew, Rinoa had finished her exam awhile back. Her shaky habit of choice, obviously shown on her pen, revealed itself as being pen chewing. Crushed and caved in with numerous bite dents, Rinoa furious nibbled desperately looking through her exam. She decided this would be the last time she rechecked her test, lucky number 32.

"Students you have exactly one minute left for the written SeeD exam. Please wrap it up." The instructor called.

Without reasonable thought, Irvine bit the bullet, answered his last question, and pressed his test packet backside up on his study panel, currently turned off. Rinoa closed her eyes and inhaled deeply doing the same. A minute later, the instructor called for pens down and rushed to pick up the test from the anxious students.

All testing students received the day free and teachers released them after his or her exam sat safely in stacks on the instructor's desk. The halls encircling the second floor classrooms were full of students whispering in excited or disgraced voices sharing their experiences and opinions with their classmates.

"So by question 50 I was exhausted but then I saw question 53 was something I definitely knew so I got a second wind…" Rinoa rapidly tried to explain to Irvine every dilemma and accomplishment she knew of from her test. Irvine nodded politely, as usual not trying to appear much worked up on something like an exam. "Question 70 about Phoenix… I was shocked because I could not believe they would ask about myths on the exam. I thought it was so unfair!"

"Rinoa!" Irvine snapped finally irritated with Rinoa's common irrationality to tests. She turned to him confused, and Irvine didn't hesitate to continue. "Weren't we going to talk about something **else**?"

In silence, Rinoa thought and as her face transformed she beamed with an answer, "You were going to tell me about Selphie!!!!"

"Not so loud Rin!" The cowboy hissed pulling her to the corner of the corridor. "Come on let's go to my dorm or something."

'''''''''''''''''

Selphie never got the chance to tread the halls so early in the day. She'd not received a day off from her classes with Matron since the day she started her classes. Today however turned out to be a bad example of a normal day around noon. With the students who'd been dismissed from classes after finishing their exams, the halls were actually sprinkled with random students.

Matron didn't tell Selphie when students normally came from class, so Selphie didn't find it unusual that students walked about. Her mind focused on one detail and it bothered her terribly. Did she upset Irvine? Was he mad at her?

It wasn't a tradition for Selphie to upset people. Although blunt, people found her to be incredibly complaisant. However, she remembered what happened with Mr. Devin that drove her to runaway from Trabia only a month and half ago and her heart sped up in fear. Surely not everyone punished a person after a mistake, or perhaps they did…

Silently, and in fear, Selphie squeezed her eyes closed and followed the gray colored dormitory hallway on the familiar route towards Irvine and Zell's dorm. As she approached the wooden frame and door with a metal stamp number she paused, too petrified to make her existence noticed by the people inside.

Gently, she rested her head against the smooth surface of the door and leaned against it. She stayed quiet and tried to calm her beating heart, but to no avail. While sitting in the silence, she heard voices from within the dorm.

"I-I can't believe that! That's sick! How do you know?"

"I'm not 100% sure, but all signs led to that."

"Oh… poor Selphie, does she know you know?"

"We haven't exactly talked about it— eh I haven't really asked anything much about Trabia. Didn't want to offend her none."

"You know, I feel awful. You know I'm going to make it up to her!"

"You don't have to Rin, you could just be a little nicer to her."

"Oh shut up Irvine, but you— are **right** I suppose."

"Thata girl."

"SHUT UP!"

With that, Selphie heard a thump, sounding like someone hitting something. The sudden noise caught her off guard as she leapt away from the door clumsily giving her a bad landing. Her legs tangled and she headed for the tiled ground. Upon hitting the ground, she gave out a loud squeak.

A moment later the door knob of the dorm's entrance turned and opened the door revealing Irvine in the doorway, fully dressed in his student uniform topped perfectly with a black cowboy hat. "Sefie!" He exclaimed excitedly rushing to help her back to her feet.

Following Irvine, Rinoa poked her head out from the doorway and beamed a kind smile. She cantered right to Selphie as she was brushing herself off. "Oh hi Selphie! I wanted to talk to you about something."

Both Irvine and Selphie looked at her awkwardly, and Irvine slightly more uncomfortable looking than Selphie. Nonetheless, Rinoa continued, "I just wanted to apologize for this morning. That was so rude of me to just push you aside like that. It's all the exam's fault. It completely stressed me out. Anyways, that's no excuse, I'm sorry."

Everyone's mood easily showed on his or her faces. Irvine exhaled in relief and grinned, pleased with Rinoa and himself. Selphie on the other hand looked wide-eyed and shocked. Her lips were parted agape and nothing seemed to escape. Rinoa looked back and forth from Irvine to her waiting for some kind of response.

Selphie made sort of a gagging sound then spurted out words, "You're sorry to **me**?! I came her to say sorry to you! I was so scared you both were super mad at me."

"Aw Selphie," Irvine said put his arms around her shoulders, "I couldn't be mad atcha. Plus, you didn't do nothing wrong."

Relaxed and comfortable in Irvine's strong arms, Selphie leaned into him and smiled. "Really?" She peered upward trying to meet eyes with the very tall cowboy. Irvine smiled and nodded in reply. His look sent jitters down her spine and butterflies in her stomach, but in a way, she enjoyed it.

"He's right Selphie, you came to wish us luck and **I **was the person being rude. Let me make it up to you; how about we take a walk to Balamb? Just us girls." Rinoa winked playfully.

Irvine released Selphie from his fortified sanctum of his arms and bowed his head, "Yeah Sefie, go on and have fun. This is the best mood you'll catch Rinoa in till the end of the entire SeeD exam. The hour after a test is the best time to hang with her."

"Irvine!" Rinoa snapped.

"I'm just kidding!" Irvine said cocking his head back jerkily. He pulled off his hat and bowed, "well I'll catch you lovely ladies later."

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

When Seifer awoke in late afternoon, he could already see the day had long started before him. The sun leaked through the shades of the infirmary triage room. He slowly squinted, revealing his pupils to the blinding light around him. His head spun mercilessly as he let out a small groan.

"I think he's awake Quistis."

Seifer heard the deep and usually sarcastic voice of Dr. Kadowaki. He grimaced as he tried to face her, the light still shining heavily in his face. A few foot falls followed, and Seifer expected Dr. Kadowaki to be hovering over him when he attempted to open his eyes again.

Instead of Dr. Kadowaki's plump body and wrinkled face, long locks of golden blonde hair tickled his cheek and Seifer laid eyes on Quistis' crystal blue irises. "Instructor Trepe?" He uttered somewhat dreamily.

Quistis didn't reply, instead she continued to inspect Seifer carefully. Once she felt sure of his conditions, she stood back and allowed Seifer more room. Her shadow cast over him giving him the ability to open his eyes freely.

"What happened?" He moaned while massaging his temples. Searing pain shot throughout his head.

"I was actually hoping you would explain that to **me**. You were found unconscious outside of Garden this morning. You stink of liquor and you ask me what happened?" Quistis crossed her arms and sent squinted her eyes in an angry grimace at Seifer.

Seifer fell silent not sure how to explain his stupidity to his instructor. There are many things people thought Seifer did without thought that were undeniably idiotic, but for the first time Seifer agreed with the common belief. Stubbornly, he turned his head refusing to make contact with Quistis.

"Not going to talk? Fine I see how it is." Quistis stamped up to him and thrust a paper packet in his lap. Seifer gave it a glance and read the bold letters of the front page reading, "**SEED WRITTEN EXAMINATION**" Confused how he was still able to attain it, Seifer looked from the test packet to Quistis over and over again unsure of what to say, ask, or do.

"I'll be outside the infirmary when you're done." Quistis said strictly.

As she marched out of the room, flaring the valence of a door, Seifer stared angrily at her tracks. He sneered at her attitude. What was her problem?

"What kind teacher, that Quistis." Dr. Kadowaki said as she entered the room. She set a timer on the side table that sat beside the bed and threw Seifer a glower. "You are incredibly lucky to have a teacher who wait seven hours by an irresponsible, unconscious student like yourself just so he doesn't miss his chance at this year's SeeD exam!" She huffed in an irritated manner.

Seifer looked at her with his same sneer, not sharing much compassion for the woman who'd so often treated him in these walls. Perhaps he'd been more appreciative had she not given him so much sass each time he visited. After she left him to his thoughts, he slowly slipped the first page of the test aside and looked the first set of questions. His eyes focused on the question, his mind focused on Quistis.

_She waited for me to wake up for seven hours? Just so I could take my exam?_

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''

The sun shined bright as it started to descend into the clouds. Rinoa and Selphie walked side by side in the bright and colorful courtyards surround Balamb Garden. Their shadows danced in the pavement behind them as they shared funny stories and whatever anecdote they could come up with. They'd come no where near their destination of Balamb, but still had enjoyed the hours pacing the Garden talking.

Rinoa knew that Selphie's earlier days in Garden were spent under her keen skeptic attitude around her. Irvine's newfound attention and attraction to her came to bother her as she felt herself replaced by the Trabian. As a result, Rinoa began to detest Selphie a minute bit. However, if Selphie had not come to Balamb, Rinoa would never found herself meeting Squall.

Whatever happened, Rinoa realized, happened for a reason. As the day wore on, the two girls realized they got along more than fairly well. Rinoa found it refreshing to have more than her womanizing man friend, and boyfriend to talk to about anything. Selphie of course, found it refreshing to talk to anyone.

"He actually didn't want my money, he just wanted the muffin!" Selphie laughed as they swapped stories of the most unusual occurrence either one had run into while walking on the streets randomly. Rinoa admitted she once had a nosy tourist arrested for attempting to kidnap her, and Selphie met a mugger who would actually beat and steal food and no money.

The two continued walking finding themselves in eye view of Garden's exit. As they drew near, a tall man in a black and white suit entered.

Upon seeing the two girls, he paused and bowed his head politely at them. Rinoa and Selphie both stopped in their tracks, both for very different reasons. Rinoa looked at the man dressed in expensive clothing and slick black with a handsome kind smile and thought him attractive. Selphie looked at the man dressed in expensive clothing and slick black with a handsome kind smile and thought him frightful.

"Hello young ladies," The man greeted himself. He walked up to them and shined a bright smile, revealing all of his perfectly straight and white teeth. "My, my Selphie. I never thought I'd see you again."

Rinoa looked surprised, she turned to Selphie with a giggly smile and asked in a hush tone, "Selphie, you know this guy?"

Selphie opened her mouth, but nothing succeeded in coming out. Her eyes strained without blinking on the man before her. Without a doubt, she knew her heartbeat had tripled in speed. Her breath would've been quickened had she been able to remember to breath.

"Selphie and I are good friends, actually my dear." He said grinning handsomely at Rinoa. "And may I ask who you are?"

"I'm Rinoa Caraway." She replied instantly blushingly slightly.

The man's panache always captivated people. Despite his age, he never wore a day on his face. His constant smile seemed trusting and kind. No matter what people thought, he was incredibly good looking.

"Caraway you say? Ah yes, I see it—" He squinted his eyes and carefully examined Rinoa, "You've the striking resemblance of the beautiful Julia Caraway. I see I am in presence of the honorable daughter of General Caraway?"

"Sadly." Rinoa sighed jokingly, unable to show true distaste in front of the man.

"Well, Ms. Caraway, would you mind if I stole Selphie away?" He said swooping in and placing an arm around Selphie's shoulders, able to lift her little bodice right off the ground if he so chose.

"Oh not at all, we were just taking a walk to Balamb." She said in a hastened voice noticing the man didn't quite wait for her to agree. Selphie still said not a word.

The man beamed, "What a marvelous idea! I think we'll finish that for you then." He chuckled heartily.

Rinoa smiled at the two and waved, "I guess I'll see you tonight Selphie?"

Before Selphie could respond, the man chirped in for her, "I wouldn't wait up for her. We may be late."

"Lots to catch up with, huh?" Rinoa inquired.

"Quite right." The man said leaving.

Rinoa continued to wave goodbye until the two reached a shiny metallic silver car parked in front of Garden's gates. Selphie was seated in the passenger side. The driver took his place and Selphie drove off in the car with Mr. Devin driving.

-------------------------

_Anger, if not restrained, is frequently more hurtful to us than the injury that provokes it.__  
--__Lucius Annaeus Seneca_

------------------------


	23. Chapter 22

"_Beautiful World!"_

_Beautiful World  
__Chapter Twenty-Two_

Once Seifer had arrived at his last question, he unlike Rinoa and Irvine circled the answer quickly and confidently. Proud of his accomplishment he stepped out of the infirmary without even noticing Dr. Kadowaki.

Right beside the electronic doors to the infirmary on a purple bench sat Quistis, sitting neatly with a stack of needing to be graded tests in her lap. "Instructor?" Seifer called hesitantly. Quistis peered up from her tests and checked her watch.

"Time to spare, I hardly expected such from a hangover student." She said snappishly.

For the first time in his life, Seifer did not retort, as he knew he wanted to. While Quistis snatched the test from him, he still just stared, not sure what he was supposed to say or, supposed to do. After his exam tucked itself safely under the stack that Quistis had been holding she turned on her heels and marched away with poise.

"Instructor—" Seifer called out.

Quistis stopped briefly, but did not turn around, "Please Seifer. I am not in the mood for whatever explanation you may have. You will have your results tomorrow with all the other students."

With that, Quistis walked away without another word. The only sound emitting from her came from her heeled boots stamping the tiled ground.

'''''''''''''''''''

"You're awfully quiet Selphie." Mr. Devin said not looking towards the girl in the passenger seat.

Selphie had not said one word since she had laid eyes on Devin a few minutes ago. Her mind found itself too lost and frantic to make out words of conversing. All the memories of her last night flooded and clouded her vision. She could barely breath, how could she speak?

"Come now, you don't think I searched for so long just to see a silent corpse now did you?" Devin continued allowing a small chuckle to follow. "Won't you say something for me, please?"

Still confused and frightened, Selphie blurted, "Why are you here?!"

Mr. Devin released a hearty laugh, "Come now Selphie, you almost sound unhappy to see me." He turned the car in dimly lit streets of Balamb, now being covering under the twilight. Devin pulled the car to a break and stepped out.

Selphie turned her from side to side and noticed other cars beside them. Men in suits, not as fancy or elegant as Devin's, stepped out and spoke to him. Leaned her head by the glass of the window in attempt to hear them.

"Sir I have the tickets to leave tonight."

"That won't be necessary. Have them rescheduled for the first train to Trabia tomorrow. Tonight we'll stay at the Balamb hotel. Needless to say, I do not want to be disturbed under any circumstances till morning, do I make myself clear?"

"Yes sir." All the men said in union.

After that, the men returned to their cars in small groups and carried on their way. Mr. Devin too, returned to the front seat of his car and started driving steadily again. The two sat in silence, Devin no longer pushing Selphie to speak. They drove up to beautiful cerulean building that stood taller than any other structure in the town. Mr. Devin came out the car, motioned Selphie to follow, and handed his car keys to a valet in the front of the building.

The two walked inside, Selphie wearing a face of utmost horror. Mr. Devin gave her a look before coming to the front desk, he chuckled, "Oh my dear Selphie. Relax won't you?"

Something about the way he said it finally settled in Selphie as she calmed down, gave a small yet weak smile, and nodded.

"That's my girl."

Devin walked up to the service desk in the back of the room where a lady sat with a kind smile. "Welcome to the lovely Balamb hotel. It's 100 gil a night, will you be staying with us?"

"Yes in fact we will, please book your grandest suite for myself, and my associates will be arriving soon. Let me reserve a few rooms for them under the na—"

While Devin was busy booking rooms for his employees and himself Selphie found herself lost in her own gaze in a mirror hanging on the wall. She looked at how much her face had changed since she'd come. There was a well pinkish shade painted on her once pale cheeks. Her face was round and healthy contrary to the sunken bones that used to form her features. Her hair, still defied gravity in an unusual hairstyle, yet it was thicker and carried more shine. Despite the positive changes, Selphie looked at her terrified wide green eyes, shaking.

"Selphie," Devin called breaking her contact with the reflecting glass. She turned to him solemnly. "Why don't you head up to the room?" He held out a card key. As slowly, as she could manage Selphie walked forward, took the key and exited the lobby in absolute silence—a walk of surrender.

When Selphie finally reached the top floor of the hotel and stood in front of the door with the matching numbers that stamped her card, but she could not bring herself to enter the dreaded room. Horrors raced through her mind, and she had no idea what Devin wanted to see her for. What would he do if he still had anger against her?

"Why don't you go inside Selphie?"

Jumpily, Selphie turned to see Mr. Devin coming towards her. As he approached the door, he grasped the card from her hand and opened the door. While it stood wide open, Devin waited patiently for Selphie to go inside. She remained, with her feet planted outside.

"I said, why don't you inside Selphie?" Devin urged the kindness slowly droning out of his voice. Selphie felt his hand on her back slyly pushing her in. She resisted and looked at Devin with a desperate face and tears welling up. She shook her head in persistence. Finally, Devin used his normal strength and shoved Selphie passed the doorway. Selphie's small body toppled over itself and fell flatly a few feet inside. Mr. Devin closed the door behind him and start pacing the room.

"I suppose if this is the finest luxury Balamb can afford." He observed the room carefully and stopped when he saw Selphie still on the floor. "Aren't you going to get up?" He took a step towards to her, with that, Selphie leapt to her feet.

"Why are you here? Why'd you bring me here?" She squeaked, too scared to say anything louder.

Devin came to Selphie and held her in his arms; he stroked her cheek and smiled, "Oh Selphie, you don't think I tracked you down just to say I'm still angry with you. Not at all." Selphie looked up at him, a look of fear still shining in her tear filled eyes. Mr. Devin rested a hand on her cheek, "You can relax my dear."

He released her from his grip and walked about the room. A tray of fine liquors glinting in the light from the window lay on a table in the front of the room. Mr. Devin poured a drink for himself and looked towards Selphie who sat herself on the very edge of the bed.

"I wanted to ask you, why you left Trabia. I was very hurt to discover you had gone. I first thought you'd perhaps been harmed." He took a seat on a bright colored chair and took another sip of his drink.

Selphie looked at him, her face and appearance dramatically more relaxed, "How did you find me?" She sat on her own legs and watched Devin drink luxuriously from his endless supply of refreshments. She forged a smile to please Mr. Devin.

Devin looked up from the rim of his glass, "I am a very powerful man Selphie. I can have anything I desire done. After I discovered you attended Balamb Garden, I waited for my business to take me to this small town of Balamb. Now, here I am."

"It's really nice here— isn't it?" Selphie whispered meekly.

"Yes, it is. I believe, however, you are avoiding the question I asked you. Why did you leave Trabia?" The tone in Devin's voice became a bit more serious and less cordial.

Nodding and biting her lip, Selphie inhaled soundly and started to speak. "I don't know… I followed a friend of mine. He brought me here. I really like it. It's a great place. I met a lotta nice people. Like Matron, Rinoa, Irv—"

A loud clash broke Selphie's thought. She looked up; saw Devin who had crashed his glass back onto its tray. He came to his feet and hurdled towards her. His hands came around her shoulders as he lifted her up to her feet. "Is that so? I'm so happy for you."

Devin didn't hold such a grip on Selphie ever, the fears started to grow within her again. "M-Mr. Devin? A-are y-you mad?"

Selphie watched Devin's hand raised as he slapped her across the face. Her head swung to the side and tears fell to the ground. She didn't even bother soothing the searing pain with her own hand.

"Am I angry?" Devin chuckled, "Where would you get an idea like that?" He placed the same hand that slapped Selphie on the red cheek and stroked it softly. "I'm not angry Selphie," he said in a low quiet voice. He brought his lips to her ear, "I'm furious."

Selphie let her head hang helplessly as tears continued to fall from her eyes.

"I daresay Balamb has treated you well. You look so much prettier than you did in Trabia. Perhaps it was not the biggest mistake for to come here. On the other hand, you didn't even care to tell me you were going?" Devin shook Selphie harshly, "After all I've done for you?" He growled in her ear. His grip on Selphie loosened, one arm reached for her chin and forced her face close to his. "I gave you life, and if I so chose," their lips were nearly touching, "I can take it away."

Mr. Devin threw the very light Selphie across the room. She cried as she hit the floor. Devin followed her spindly corpse flailing to the ground and grasped her hair pulling her head up, "You belong to me. You can pretend to run and hide but I will always be here. You cannot run from me." He didn't let go of her hair, he threw it back into the ground.

"You followed a friend you said? Who gave you the permission? Who do you think you are?" Devin grasped Selphie and looked closely at her tear stained face, "Do what you want but learn, I will punish you when you disobey me. Apparently, this little puppy has forgotten her master. I will gladly REMIND YOU!" Devin threw Selphie for the last time against the wall.

Selphie weakly opened her eyes as she landed on her knees after crashing into the hard wall. Black spots started blinding her vision. She could see Devin walking towards her again, "Ir-Irvine…" She said weakly before passing out.

'''''''''''''''''''

Irvine paced Rinoa and Selphie's dormitory in a stressful manner. "Why isn't she back yet?" He snapped.

Rinoa ran her fingers through Angelo's fur as she flipped through an edition of Pet Pals. "Irvine, why are you so worried? I told you they said not to wait up." She yawned as she turned another page.

"I'm worried because it's little, tiny Selphie! Anything could happen. She can't defend herself!" Irvine let himself collapse on the cushion bed beside Rinoa. "What if she's out there hurt, calling me and I'm here…"

Fluttering the magazine closed, Rinoa tossed it aside and grasped Irvine's hand. She met his eyes and stayed quiet for a moment. Slowly she started to speak, "Irvine, I think you have real feelings for Selphie."

Irvine swatted Rinoa away and came to his feet. "No I don't! I just— she's tiny! I mean you could push her over. I just don't want Matron chewing me out when she doesn't show up for class tomorrow. I did bring her **here**." Irvine rubbed the back of his neck trying to remain cool with his rescue explanation.

"Okay fine if you don't have real feelings can we talk about mine at least?!" Rinoa cried desperately.

"Feelings for what? Your hotheaded boyfriend? I've heard enough of him." Irvine sighed starting to pace again.

"If only it was Seifer. I'm worried Irvine. Am I bad person for thinking about another guy?" Rinoa jumped in front of Irvine and grasped his shoulders, "Am I going to hell???"

"If you're going to hell I hate to think where I'm going." Irvine removed her hands off him and continued to strut around the small dorm. "When is she coming back Rin? How could you let her go with some weird guy?"

"Really Irvine relax. He was such a nice gentleman. I know she'll be okay with him." The confidence in Rinoa's voice when she described the man Selphie disappeared with calmed Irvine. He sat on the bed forced a smile.

"I hope you're right." He rested on the bed and laid down while Rinoa hovered overhead.

"Of course I'm right. I always am. Anyways we have enough to worry about with all the exams stuff. Let's just relax." She smiled at him comfortingly. Irvine patted her head in gratitude. With a small giggle from his gesture, Rinoa toppled on to her back and the two stared at the ceiling.

"I wonder how Seifer did on the exam." Rinoa said watching the small beads in the ceiling. In her mind she actually wondered _I wonder what Squall's doing right now?_

"Yeah, I wonder how I did on the exam." Sighed Irvine while playing connect-the-dots using his finger and the dots on the ceiling. In his mind he echoed, _I hope Selphie is okay_.

''''''''''''''''''''

"Seifer, you should rest ya know? It's not good for you to be over workin' like this ya know?"

Seifer drowned out the concerns of Rajin with whisking sounds of his proud metal gunblade stabbing a grat mercilessly in and out of its middle. It swatted with its long tentacles but Seifer barely noticed. The adrenalin of fighting gave reason to living, he love the rush. After the grat bowed down to accept death, Seifer wiped his forehead with his long gray trench coat sleeve and sat himself on a rock beside his other friend, Fujin.

"EXHAUSTION?" She asked caringly holding out a cooled potion. Seifer swiped it from her hand and gulped it down in single drink.

The shiny metallic blade of Seifer's sword reflected a strong light as he slid the flat part of the cold metal against his forehead. "This is resting for me guys." He said with a smirk.

Seifer sat cooling down and waiting for the next grat to appear from behind the jungle wilderness of the Training Center. Instead of hearing monsters prowling about, he heard a shuffle and voices. Contrary to want he wanted to confront, Seifer realized it was just a pair of students. However, as leader of the unofficial disciplinary committee he loved scaring students into thinking they did something wrong.

He motioned for Fujin and Rajin to follow him as he silently followed the noises he heard coming from another pathway in the center. Once he they came close enough to hear conversation and see shadows, they halted in place.

"Is there a reason we're coming here?" A man's voice sounded.

"You'll see when we get there, else there'd be no point in coming out this far, no?" Explained a much softer feminine voice. The pair fell silent again as they continued to walk through the path. Finally, their figures came before their shadows and Seifer laid eyes on Instructor Trepe walking alongside Squall.

As they went further along, Rajin nudged Seifer to make his move. Seifer, however, stayed frozen in place. His eyes burned as he watched the two continue to walk in silence. They stopped at a corner of the wilderness. Quistis knocked on what appeared to be the wall of the Training Center, it cracked open and a doorway revealed before their eyes. Squall and Quistis entered and closed the door behind them.

"Seifer you let them get away, ya know!" Rajin cried out.

"WEAKNESS." Fujin said detesting.

"We're done tonight. Let's go." Seifer said coldly sheathing his sword. Fujin and Rajin attempted to object, but their leader shut them before they could utter a sound. The three marched out of the Training Center.

Seifer felt a fire burning his insides, he could not fathom why seeing Instructor Trepe and Squall together infuriated him so, but he could not get the picture out of his head. He detested Squall, and he hated Quistis for being with him. Why did she drag him out in the middle of the night? What did she want to tell him?

The Disciplinary Committee parted ways once they arrived at the gray colored dormitory hall. Fujin and Rajin bade Seifer goodnight, but Seifer marched away without a word. His mind found itself too occupied and flustered to talk to his comrades. Instead of heading straight to his dorm, he quickened his pace and ran down another familiar route.

Rinoa's dorm appeared unlocked, and without hesitance, Seifer stormed in. With all his luck, he half expected to find Squall inside with Rinoa. Instead, he found Rinoa asleep on her bed snuggled by Irvine.

Despite Irvine's womanizing habits, seeing Irvine with Rinoa intimidated him as much as seeing her with a gay man. The two were as close as siblings were, and probably closer since they weren't actually related. Seifer wasn't bothered with Irvine in the room, but he wasn't kind enough to just let them be. He grabbed Rinoa's resting arm and shook her awake.

She groggily opened her eyes and squinted at the light still open in her room. "Seifer?" She yawned trying to make out his face. Seifer didn't reply with words, rather he held Rinoa tightly and kissed her, hard.

Rinoa's eyes shot open and made a small sound effect in shock. Irvine even started to wake up and caught sight of what appeared to be a very uncomfortable kiss for Rinoa. Once broken free, Seifer stared deeply into Rinoa's eyes in somewhat defeated way and uttered quietly.

"Goodnight."

Not sure how to react, Rinoa too said goodnight, and watched Seifer take his leave. As her dorm closed, she fell back on the bed where Irvine still half laid. He gave her a bizarre glance.

"Well that's… romantic." He said half sardonically.

Rinoa wiped her lips with the back of her forearm, "Yeah, he's never done anything like that." She faced Irvine and bit her lip, "Do you think he suspects something?"

"If I know Seifer, and I don't mean that I do, I don't think he'd be kissing you if he thought you were being unfaithful, he'd be beating ya." Irvine said too coolly than the situation called for. After seeing Rinoa's terrified reaction, he laughed it off. "I'm kidding! Ya don't really think he'd do anything. Maybe he's just deprived. I know the feeling." He continued with a sarcastic grin, "Anyways how'd he get in here?"

Rinoa walked to the door and locked it; "I left it open for Selphie."

Irvine leapt to his feet, "Don't lock it! Is she back yet?!" His head darted towards a clock behind him, "It's three in the morning! Where is she?"

Groaning sleepily Rinoa unlocked her door for Irvine's appeasement and pushed him back to her room, "She's probably in her room sleeping, don't wake her up." She tilted her head pointing towards the small white door leading to Selphie's room of the dorm.

Sighing heavily, Irvine agreed and lay back down on Rinoa's bed and attempted to sleep. Rinoa easily let slumber overcome her, but for hours Irvine listened closely for signs of movement passed Rinoa and himself. He watched the dorm entry through Rinoa's open door and strained to keep his eyes open as long as he could until he finally found himself asleep.

'''''''''''''''''''''''

The windows in the beautiful grand suite of the Balamb hotel were open with the cool ocean breeze blowing the veil curtains that covered them. The breeze most would find refreshing, however it woke Selphie up with a chill.

Once Selphie's emerald eyes finally unpeeled, her entire body jerked awake as she scanned the room trying to understand what had happened, and what would happen. Her body ached all over and she found her articles of clothing spread around the floor.

Tears of shame came to Selphie's eyes. She held the satin blue comforter tight to her body and laid back down and wept into the pillow that formed the shape of her head as she pressed into it. As she hiccupped between cries, her body shook in pain. Her muscles were sore and bruised from Devin's obvious anger from before she passed out, she could only wonder what happened afterwards.

Selphie buried her face in the sinking pillow and sobbed until the full side had formed a darker color from her tears.

After she felt she could cry no more, Selphie finally raised herself up and started slowly reaching out for the articles of clothing and putting them back on. When she was half dressed, she noticed a tray of a covered meal rested on a table a few feet away from the bed.

Her stomach growled in pains of hunger. Selphie hesitantly walked over to the silver dishware and noticed a small folded note beside it. Her thin little fingers carefully held it up and slowly followed its creases opening it to reveal Devin's handwriting and wet ink.

**_Remember what I said_**

_**I don't think you'll be able to find yourself able to forget it**_

_**-Devin**_

Selphie felt like a cork trapped itself in her airway as flashes from the day before stung her mind. She glanced once more at the note reading the last line.

_**Also, eat up. You'll need your strength.**_

All her life Selphie found herself scrapping by to obtain food, never refusing it when it came along. All the desperate measures in life landed her here, alone in a hotel suite with a gourmet meal before her. Selphie threw the creased note as far from her as she could and slowly slid back on the ground to cry again.

She folded in her knees and hugged them sobbing with her head resting against her thighs. It then occurred to her that her upper right thigh stung with a burning pain, more over that it appeared bandaged up. Her tears halted as she nimbly unwrapped the white strips that wound over and over her leg.

Once she could see her skin came to eye view she laid eyes on the most grotesque sight she'd ever seen. She cupped her mouth closed and bawled in a mixed screaming.

She felt so ashamed…

She felt so dirty…

How she loved Mr. Devin…

How she trusted Mr. Devin…

Her life belonged to him…

If he so chose, he could take it away…

The secret hidden under the bandages were undeniable proof of that…

Scared of what she'd revealed, Selphie immediately returned the padding over her thigh and covered it. She finished dressing and crawled to the bathroom. The newfound injury on her thigh made walking painful, and she decided to avoid it as long as she could.

The cold tiles pained Selphie's aching body as she moved across on all fours. As she skulked through the washroom, she began to understand why Mr. Devin left her a meal and stated she needed to eat. Not only did she feel weary, but also in the corner of the room sat pile of marooned stained towels no doubt used for Selphie's thigh. She held her hand over her mouth to avoid gagging.

Selphie weakly pulled herself up to the sink and faced the mirror before it. Other than her eyes and cheek red from crying and rubbing, her face had no other obvious marks on it. She released a relieved sigh, cupped her hands under the faucet, and started washing her face.

Finally, Selphie found herself in state that is far more presentable. She limped over to the table where a warm meal still waited for her. Her hand trembled as she lifted the cover over the meal and slowly began eating, trying hard to fight back tears with each bite.

'''''''''''''''''''''

The second floor flooded with students waited eagerly for the results of the written SeeD exam to be posted. Amongst them stood Zell, Irvine and Rinoa huddled together as close to the wall where the test results were hanging stuffed in the crowd of students.

"Hey Rinoa!" Irvine called trying to overpower the noisy students, "You think Selphie's okay?"

"Yeah of course!" Rinoa shouted back, "She's always gone before I even wake up!"

Upon hearing this, Irvine felt a bit relieved. He turned his attention back to Zell who'd been squeezing beyond them to reach the scores. He cupped his hands around his mouth and bellowed over to him. "Zell what do you see!"

All he heard in reply was a very excited, "OH YEAH!"

Rinoa grasped her arm irritably, "What about **us **Zell!"

Zell nodded and scouted the posters again led his finger through the rows of student's names. "Rinoa!" He shouted, "Rinoa passed!"

With a smug smile, Rinoa pushed her hair back and laughed. "Of course." She turned to Irvine who obviously was not amused and her smile dissolved back to a more sober look, "I-I mean AND IRVINE?"

"Irvine passed!" Zell cried out as he started to make his escape from the wall. The three squeezed from the masses and inhaled deeply once they found themselves freed into the open hall. Once they felt safe from the crowd, the all did their own performance of cheer. Rinoa held a hand over her heart and gasped looking much like an actress winning a big award, Irvine grinned a confident look and told every person who went by he passed, and Zell leapt into the air and marched about in a circle.

The three were not the only ones who celebrated aloud. The part of the corridor that held the scattered students who knew their results all cheered or mourned depending on his or her passing or failing.

Rinoa noticed Squall casually walking down the hall ignoring the mix of commemoration and crying and continued calmly to his class. She squinted her eyes with curiosity. "Hey guys," She motioned to Irvine and Zell, "I'll catch up with you guys later." The two boys didn't even hear or see her go but continued dancing in rejoice.

Still excited and confident from her success Rinoa smugly tapped on Squall's shoulder while tiptoeing behind him. Squall halted and turned about. He gave small curl of his lip to politely greet her but said nothing.

"Aren't you going to check if you passed or not?" She asked with a small giggle.

Squall swatted his hand and clicked his tongue in a bored fashion. "I already know I passed." He replied bluntly.

Rinoa jerked back and crossed her arms, "Well geez, aren't you Mr. Confident!"

Shaking his head, Squall crossed his arms and continued, "I didn't mean it like that. Instructor Trepe already told me."

"Are you serious? When?"

"Last night."

"How unfair! I didn't know instructors could do that!"

"Well—she did." Squall finished flatly. With that, he looked over Rinoa's shoulder and started to walk away back in his casual way into his classroom.

Rinoa spun around and saw Seifer coming towards her. He furled his eyebrows irritably, "What were you doing with Pretty boy?"

"You won't believe it!" Rinoa shrieked slapping her forehead with her palm, "Instructor Trepe told Squall he passed last night. I hounded Akii and he wouldn't say a word!"

Seifer blinked and looked over to where Squall had walked. "Lucky him." He said sourly. Rinoa pulled on his shirt turning his attention back to her.

"So how'd you do?" She asked shiny her puppy dog brown eyes at him.

"I passed," He answered with an arrogant smile.

"Oh I'm so happy! I did too!" Rinoa leapt up, kissed Seifer on the cheek, and embraced him tightly. "Let's go and celebrate tonight, okay?"

Seifer patted Rinoa's hands and shook his head without looking at her. His eyes focused on the classroom door Squall had entered. "Not tonight Rinoa." He said slowly walking away.

Rinoa watched him walk away defeated. She bit the inside of her cheek and scowled. "That's okay… I'll celebrate with Irvine! I'm sure he wants to hang out!" A small pain twanged as Seifer nonchalantly blew her off. She nodded, "Yeah Irvine and I!" Seifer did not call back with any intention of saying he'd make it up to her. Rinoa squinted her eyes; _maybe Squall will celebrate with me. _

-------------------------

_The hearts has its reasons which reason knows not of.  
--Blaise Pascal_

------------------------

Sorry I've been taking so long to update. I'll bet getting better at that, I'm getting more organized lol. Anyways I judge how fast I should update based on the reviews I get, when it appears I have little to no active readers I take longer. I'm sorry! Now that I'm a tad more aware this story is getting read I'll be sure and try to update on a weekly basis. (Still the reviews would be awesome).


	24. Chapter 23

_"Mayowaz kimi dake wo mistsumeteiru"  
("I have no doubt I only look at you")_

_Beautiful World  
Chapter Twenty-Three_

Seifer stepped into class, his eyes focused on finding Squall. His eyes darted across the room landing at Instructor Trepe's desk. A small sneer twitched on Seifer's lip as Quistis smiled at Squall and nodded her head in agreement. Squall, too nodded and left to go to his seat.

As soon as Quistis sat back down, she turned to the entrance of the room spotting Seifer. "Seifer," She said amiably with a smile.

With Quistis' gaze on him, Seifer forgot what it was his anger told him he should say, but rather what had earlier left him feeling guilty the day before. He walked up to her to desk and his normal carefree and slick attitude returned. "Instructor—"

"I just wanted to personally congratulate you." Quistis said quickly cutting him off. She pressed her fingers to her chest, "I personally had little faith. I am glad that I waited for you in the infirmary for good reason."

Seifer knew he wanted to say something; he wanted to ask her why she waited for him. He wanted to ask what she did with Squall. He wanted to hug her…

"Anyways, congratulations. You can tell me all about your escapades at our session this afternoon." Quistis said gesturing his dismissal.

Finally, Seifer found himself talking sense to himself, "Of course, Instructor, what ever you say." He turned around and headed towards the back of the classroom. He fumed to himself about his previous thought; he needed to do something 'Seifer-like' to redeem himself. With his normal sly smile he turned back around facing Quistis and said, "I told you instructor, save the good luck for someone who needs it?"

Quistis held a hand to her lips as she laughed gently, "You came out of unbelievable odds, but you were right Seifer."

Seifer smugly returned on his track overly happy with the way Quistis told him **he **was right.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

When the bell rang dismissing classes, Rinoa stood outside Instructor Trepe's door knowing Seifer wouldn't come pass her. She did know however, Squall would. As soon as she spotted him with his school uniform shirt's buttons open revealing a white tunic and his normal heavy lion pendant on its thick chain a smiled touched her lips.

"Squall," Rinoa sounded making him stop. She stepped to him cordially and grinned wider. "I realized that I was so surprised about hearing you got your test results early that I didn't even get to say congratulations to you." She knelt cupping her hands over her knees, "So congratulations!"

Squall nodded his head, "Thanks. How did you do?"

Rinoa leapt straight, "Squall! You're actually conversing with me!"

"Apparently I shouldn't have." He said crossing his arms and looking away.

With a small laugh, Rinoa held her hand up and shook her head. "No, no— I'm just so happy!" She brought her face close to his, "I mean I feel like we're friends actually!" Realizing how close she'd come to Squall, Rinoa took a large step back and beamed again, "Well friend, let's celebrate! I passed and you passed."

Squall shrugged, "Sounds good. What do you want to do?"

"What is it you boys like to do?"

'''''''''''''''''''''

After the rest of the classmates, including the annoying trio of Quistis fanatics that'd named themselves Trepies as in "Trepe Groupies", Seifer finally found himself alone with his instructor. A mix between a sly smile and terrible twitch touched his lips as he stepped closer to confronting Quistis about being with Squall in the middle of the night. The thought and memory brought a sick pitting feeling to his stomach.

"Instructor—" He started, confident he'd pressure Quistis to discomfort. The idea didn't disturb him, but rather excited him as though he'd finally conquered her.

Quistis turned to him after watching the last of her students exit the room. She turned to him with her normal gracious smile, polite, but not too much. "You wanted to apologize now, am I correct?"

Seifer halted in place, taken aback and now speechless.

Gracefully, Quistis sifted and straightened a stack of review packets the class had all done and placed them in a drawer in her desk. She turned her attention back to Seifer and pushed a lock of hair behind her ear. "I fear I may not want to hear it, but no matter what—"

The two met eyes and gazed at each other in silence. Seifer lost himself in Quistis' crystal blue eyes.

"I won't judge you." She finished with a reassuringly.

A conflict zoomed throughout Seifer's mind. Half of him wanted to reply with a snide, 'You're judging **me**?' The other half halted him in his tracks telling him to take a seat, look into his instructor's serene eyes and pour out his despairing heart of how he felt he felt forever doomed to domination from Squall.

Sluggishly, a foot moved towards Quistis' desk. Seifer felt his own body fighting itself, but all physical appendages surrendered to his yearning heart looking for someone, anyone to listen and listen to him without judgment. No words any human could have uttered could have sounded more magical or enchanting.

''''''''''''''''''''

Selphie forced herself to hobble out of the hotel and slowly but surely back to Garden. Upon leaving, a few mechanics at a nearby gas station suggested she rent a car since walking appeared difficult. When she refused, they at least advised she stay on the road or very close to it to avoid monsters.

The walk from town to Garden grew tiring and seemed endless. As soon as Selphie entered the iron gates to the Garden, she allowed herself to collapse on the first set on benches. Her legs stretched along the carved stone as she gazed up exhausted at the sky.

"Hey there!" A voice that sounded vaguely familiar sounded.

A few moments later, a head hovered over Selphie's and she came eye to eye with Nida, the boy she'd met in the library. "Selphie, right?"

A grin touched her lips as she nodded with more cheer than she thought she could muster.

"What are you doing here alone? In fact, why are you out here at all?" He asked bizarrely. He lent a hand and helped Selphie off her back to a sitting position. With all the free space on the bench now readily available, Nida comfortably took a seat beside her.

"I just came from Balamb, I'm a little tired. I'm allowed to be out here, right?" Selphie spoke hesitantly afraid to seem suspicious.

Nida rubbed his chin, "You **must **be new here. You're allowed to be out here as long as you want but the Garden gates," he pointed towards the gates Selphie had just entered, "are closed and locked around midnight." His hand moved over and motioned to Garden entrance passed the stone courtyard, "Those lock up a half hour later. There's usually an entrance somewhere that's open, so I wouldn't panic if you locked yourself out."

Selphie nodded indicating she understood and listened to everything Nida had explained.

"Anyways, I'm actually glad I found you out here, or anyone. I've been trying to help my sister out. She's head of the Student Festival Committee. So far, she's the only member that's dedicated any time. She's starting to get nervous now that the SeeD written exams are over and the Inauguration Ball can happen any day now. I'm looking for some new recruits, do you think you'd like to join?"

Before she could worry about Nida's real concern, Selphie heard him mention ball. Her curiosity piqued and her face transformed into a delighted look ready to learn. "What's the In-auger—ation Ball?"

With a gleam of pride in his eyes, Nida looked away from Selphie into the distance as thought lost in a daze. "It's a very elegant dance held every year after the final SeeD exams. It's hosted to celebrate all new SeeD recruits. I've never been, but even if you're not invited all Student Festival Committee members get to go to it."

The same gleam now sparkled in Selphie's eyes. Memories of dancing along Mr. Devin's shining ballroom fluttered through her mind. She remembered Mr. Devin telling her how the room had seldom been used. The idea seemed so glamorous in her mind. "So I can go, if I join this… committee?"

"Of course, and you'll help plan, decorate that and so many other events!" Nida answer enthused he finally found an interested person.

Selphie beamed with a smile, "Okay Nida! Sign me up, when do we start?"

Nida nodded happily, "This weekend, Wimbly and I will be in the Quad. Bring anyone you can get to help." With that, Nida stood up, looked to Selphie and smiled happily. He waved and continued to watch her as he walked backwards back to Garden.

After a good amount of time had passed, Selphie forced herself to stand on her injured leg and she continued to limp to Garden.

'''''''''''''''''

Seifer slumped back into his chair and looked at the wall passed Quistis' head. He felt too embarrassed to look her in the eyes. After relaying everything that'd taken place the night before, he realized how ridiculous he acted. He could only imagine what Quistis now concluded of him.

She hadn't spoken a word since Seifer started his overdramatic story. The humiliation started to seep into him, and made his desire to run out of the classroom stronger and stronger.

"Seifer," She began in a soft tone, her voice very concerned, "this jealousy— this jealousy you have against Squall isn't healthy for you."

"You think I'm **JEALOUS**?!" Seifer roared.

"I don't **think** you're anything, I can see it plain as day. Your jealousy for Squall is so old and has grown into something you yourself cannot understand. Squall has never actually done anything to you worth hating him for, but you do." Quistis stared up at him. Her appeared eyes gentle, still containing an amiable glance without holding judgment. "I've noticed, it's not actually been productive for you. Instead, you let the anger get the best of you and hurt yourself in ways you didn't realize."

The bitter truth hit Seifer like a cannon ball into his stomach. He griped the seat of his chair holding back from shouting words of anger and frustration and forced himself to listen to Quistis.

"For instance, Rinoa. I have much doubt she's deliberately trying to hurt you. I believe all she wants is some attention, or perhaps new attention. It's natural and human. Unless you want to help her replace that void, she feels she needs to fill, then let her be friends with him."

Seifer hung his head and still avoided eye contact with Quistis.

"I think that's enough for today. Why don't you go ahead and enjoy the rest of your evening?" Quistis suggested politely.

"Finish what you started." Seifer retorted dully.

Confused, Quistis stood in silence unsure what Seifer meant by his words.

"You think I let Squall mess with a lot of things in my life. Go ahead, say it all."

A small laugh escaped Quistis' lips. She stood up, as Seifer heard her chair skidding over the floor he shot his head up and met eyes with her again. "Seifer, all these sessions started with your apparent problem with Squall. I know it's an issue, but I'd hate to insult you and blame all the issues the world thinks you have on Squall." She took a few steps towards the exit, "In fact, I know that's not the case. Your jealousy affects you but it's not all that troubles you. I know this because—" Quistis put one foot outside of her classroom and concealed her small bodice with the doorway leaving only her titled head visible to Seifer. Her locks of hair swayed as she let her head dangle. "Because you've already changed before my eyes even though your relationship with Squall hasn't."

''''''''''''''''''''''''

To Selphie's fortune, no one was in her dorm when she finally reached it. Her thigh throbbed in pain as she fell onto her bed. As she did, her arms flailed outward hitting a thick book. Selphie leaned onto her side discovering the Gilgamesh book she'd been reading. Happily, she pulled the book closer to her, flipping through it to find her place.

A warm comfort took over Selphie as the words came to life in her mind. The main character, Galn, took shape as Irvine. The brave Galn tried crazy yet brave tricks to capture Gilgamesh and thus far didn't come close to succeeding. When Nida first told Selphie about the book, it seemed foolish for Galn to be so determined for such a futile cause. However, as she began reading it she saw Galn had an intention behind his madness.

Galn, raised by a poor family, fell in love with a woman in class higher than his own. Her family guffawed at the prospect when he came to propose. Galn, desperate to win his love's hand in marriage, declared to do the impossible and capture Gilgamesh as a gift to his lover's family. Surely then, Galn thought, they would accept his lineage and allow him to marry his one true love Leona.

The book fell from Selphie's hand as she fell into slumber. Her dreams carried her to Galn's time and she found herself in Leona's room. Galn called at her window and she rushed to him. There stood Irvine, hanging from the vines that grew close by.

"_Galn, marry someone else and leave this madness. If something happens to you—_"

Irvine, or Galn, laughed and put his hand on his love's cheek. "_Gilgamesh is just a legend. We'll be together soon Leona._"

''''''''''''''''''''''''

Rinoa walked back to her room with a fleeting smile on her face. Squall and her had spent hours in the Training Center for Squall's idea of celebrating. She knew Squall actually had not intended to 'celebrate' whatsoever and made up some sort of activity to please her. The simple prospect that he tried for her sake brought a blooming smile to her face. When was the last time someone sacrificed time and attention just for her?

The sun slowly drifted into the horizon and the golden light streaked through the wide-open windows of the hallways. Rinoa tiptoed throughout the tiled ground, feeling almost weightless as she glided across the smooth floor.

Still lost in her thoughts, Rinoa entered her dorm making little sound. Her head tilted over and spotted through the openness of Selphie's door that the absent lass laid peacefully asleep in her room. Content with that knowledge, she took a seat at the study table that covered most of the main dorm room. Memories of the day skimmed through her mind. Memories of Squall swing about his gunblade, his voice calm and controlled at all times, his mysterious looks, and his sullen exterior— all his characteristics intrigued her. What surprised her the most was his contradictory behavior.

Very few people find themselves in Squall Leonhart's company, ever. Not only did Rinoa find herself spending more time than any one person may have, but Squall genuinely tried to keep her around. True, he didn't hunt her down to spend time with her, but he didn't he push her away anymore or persist to end their get-togethers short.

That factor made Rinoa feel incredibly special, more special than she had felt in quite a long time.

A knock sounded at the door throwing Rinoa out of her dreamy state of mind. She spun her attention to the entrance as Seifer opened the door and allowed himself inside. Upon seeing her boyfriend, Rinoa transformed into a crimson red color ashamed of her prior thoughts. How could she be thinking of Squall so intimately when she **has** a man?

Seifer smiled at her, "There you are, it's been awhile." A small chuckled escaped him.

Rinoa pushed her hair behind her ear and turned away quickly, too embarrassed to face him. Seifer found her shyness amusing and held her by her shoulders, turning her to look at him. "So you didn't miss me?" He asked slyly.

"I don't feel like talking—" Rinoa said hesitantly pulling herself from Seifer's grip.

As she loosened and escaped from Seifer's grasp, he looked at her puzzled. "Okay, I know you're probably still mad at me about overreacting like I have been lately. This isn't easy to say, so just listen." Seifer sat himself into a chair and leaned it back so it suspended itself on its two back legs. "I know I've been acting a little bit over the top about Squall. I'm sorry." Seifer spat flatly. Rinoa looked at him with the same gaze, obviously unimpressed. Seifer groaned and sputtered one last sentence, "You can hang out with him and I won't get mad anymore."

Rinoa's face lifted as she rushed over to Seifer and wrapped her arms around his neck. Seifer stumbled out of his chair and forced himself to stand up to support Rinoa's enthusiasm. After her tight embrace, she moved her head to face his; with a quick smile, she kissed him excitedly and let Seifer continue.

The two giggled happily as they moved over to Rinoa's room. Before they could pass the frame of the door, the dorm's entrance flew open again and Irvine entered. Rinoa shot her head over Seifer's shoulder. "Irvine! What are you doing here?!" She hissed.

Seifer broke the embrace between Rinoa and himself and turned to the tall cowboy with an irritated look. "What the hell Kinneas! Get lost!"

"You two can have as much sex as you want, just let me see if Selphie's here." Irvine said sweeping his gaze side-to-side, scouting the dorm for Selphie.

Rinoa pushed Seifer out of her way and irritably and marched over to Irvine. She leapt up, grasped his ear, and yanked him down to meet her eyes to eye. "Look Kinneas, it has been really rough with Seifer and me lately, can you **please **get lost?" Irvine, of course, ignored her and spotted Selphie's room door slightly open.

"Let me just see Selphie—" Irvine said not paying much attention to his friend. He brushed passed her and entered Selphie's room soundly without another word.

Seifer groaned and exited Rinoa's room with a look of defeat. He held a lock of Rinoa's hair, and tugged it softly. Just as miserably as Seifer, Rinoa gazed up at him and shrugged sadly. "Sorry my ass of a friend ruined the mood."

Seifer's hand continued to run through Rinoa's soft ebony colored hair. He pulled her head close to his and kissed her gently. Rinoa stood still, closed her eyes and enjoyed the short moment until Seifer pulled away and threw one last evil glance at the back of Irvine Kinneas. "I don't blame you, I'll just see you tomorrow."

Once Seifer had left, Rinoa turned all her frustration to Irvine. She barged into Selphie's small room and reclaimed Irvine's ear. While Irvine verbally fought her, Rinoa dragged the stubborn cowboy back out to the open, closing Selphie's door as she did. As soon as Selphie's door was closed, Rinoa released Irvine and placed her hands on her hips.

"Listen I'm sorry," Irvine started.

"No you're not! You ruined everything!" Rinoa hissed with small tears brimming her eyes. She cupped her hands over her face and threw herself into a chair muffling her small sobbing.

Irvine rubbed the back of his neck and gazed at Rinoa guiltily. "Aw come on Rin, all this because I stopped a make-out session?" He sat himself in an empty chair and scooted it closer to Rinoa. His hand patted her shoulder encouraging the teary brunette to look up at him. "Come on, tell me what ya'll were celebratin'."

Rinoa rubbed her cheek and embarrassed turned away, "I was just happy— he said he'd stop getting mad at me for hanging out with Squall."

A confused look spread along Irvine's face. He looked up as to imitate pondering.

"What's with you?" Rinoa asked sourly unappreciative of the cowboy's sarcasm.

"Let me get this straight—" Irvine started facing Rinoa once again. "You two," He pointed at Rinoa, "were making out because he's letting you hang out with another guy? Shouldn't you be making out with the other fella?"

"Irvine!" Rinoa snapped loudly.

"I mean, do you even like Seifer anymore? Seems to me neither of ya are too happy together." He continued, not even paying the least bit attention to Rinoa's obvious fury.

"Irvine Kinneas! Of course, I like Seifer! I love him! He's my boyfriend." Rinoa lower her voice and gazed about, eyes full of nostalgia, "He's the only one I've been with."

"You've been with me." Irvine said with a dirty smile.

Glaring evilly back, Rinoa hissed, "Dating two weeks as preteens doesn't count!"

The dirty smirk stayed on Irvine's face as he stood up and patted Rinoa's shoulder, "You keep telling yourself that," he said with a small chuckle. He stood outside Selphie's door and turned his head to side in attempt to face Rinoa, "Just be careful Rin, I don't want you pulling yourself into too much trouble. More importantly I wouldn't want nothin' to ever hurt ya." Rinoa didn't move, but continued to sit motionless, her hands cupping her kneecaps.

'''''''''''''

Irvine quietly swept passed Selphie's creaking door and soundlessly benched himself at the foot her bed. Selphie's small little body took up a fraction of the mattress. Her frail figure was so thin that every time she inhaled too deeply, her chest seemed to borderline burst.

Selphie's closed eyes were so relaxed. Her entire face looked comfortable. Watching her mix of white and red face move gently as her lips adjusted to breathing mesmerized him in a way he never felt before. His eyes fixated on her small lips, pink and slightly parted to allow in air.

Without thinking clearly, Irvine moved forward and found he was climbing over Selphie reaching with his lips to hers. Only inches away, Irvine's hand moved to gain support so he wouldn't crush Selphie's incredibly petite structure. His hand landed on a book, which slid from under his hand and crashed noisily on the ground.

Almost instantly, Selphie's eyes shot open. She gazed straight up and beamed upon seeing Irvine. Her arms wrapped around his readily close neck and she held herself as close as she could manage, lifting herself off her bed a pure inch. "Irvy…" She whispered in his neck.

Unsure of how to react with Selphie's overwhelming compassion, Irvine slowly readjusted his back, came to a sitting position, and comfortably returned Selphie's tight embrace. "Yeah Sefie, it's me. I've been real worried about you…"

Minutes passed and Selphie didn't say another word regarding her whereabouts or anything for that matter. She continued to snuggle and squeeze herself against Irvine burying her face into his neck and the collar of his shirt.

Normally Irvine appreciated girls and their tender embraces, he usually knew how to manipulate their security hugs to raw sexual energy. Something about Selphie's frantic hold halted him from even trying though. Irvine finally succumbed to curiosity and worry, pulled Selphie far enough to see her face, and looked her in the eye with a gentle glance. "Sefie, where were you?"

Selphie's face fell, her childlike eyes looked passed her round nose to the bedding beneath her. "Are you really mad at me?"

"Mad? Why would I be mad?" Irvine chuckled hesitantly, "Matron might be a little—"

"Matron is mad at me?!" Selphie almost cried with tears, a sob throbbed in the back of her throat.

Irvine patted her shoulder and hugged her comfortingly. Selphie rested her very concerned head on Irvine's chest and nearly hyperventilated. "I was kidding!" He stroked her head, soothing her coming to be sobs. "Like I said, we were real worried about ya. Rinoa just told us you went with a friend and I didn't know what'd happen to ya."

Rubbing her eyes gently, Selphie forced her neck to face upward and catch a glimpse of Irvine's handsome and calm face. "No one is mad at me?"

"You're so funny, Sefie. I could never be at ya. You're too cute."

Selphie giggled, found a leak in Irvine's embrace and pulled herself out. She tilted her head cutely and winked. "I'm happy then."

"Good," Irvine said tipping his cowboy hat gently with his index finger and thumb. "So you wanna go practice some today?"

Excitedly, Selphie nodded and began lifting her legs. As she stretched her thigh, a searing pain gushed throughout and caused Selphie to stop in her tracks. She stayed quiet hoping to fight back her cries of pain. Irvine, already on his feet looked at her curiously. Selphie glanced meekly at Irvine and bit her lip. "Actually, I'm kind of tired today. Maybe tomorrow?"

Irvine nodded compliantly and patted Selphie's chestnut hair. "Don't worry none. You rest up. Don't miss class with Matron tomorrow or she might get cross." He slid behind Selphie's door, and shot one last smile as a goodbye.

"Oh wait, Irvy!"

Loyally, Irvine peeked his head back in and awaited Selphie to continue.

"Um I met this guy named Nida. He's really nice and he asked if I wanted to join this commeetee… do you want to come with me? It's really fun! And we get to go to a ball!"

Slightly confused Irvine clicked his tongue obviously not too thrilled by the idea. He looked helplessly at Selphie's whose face was full of enthusiasm and apparent excitement of the prospect, he reluctantly nodded and said, "Of course Sefie. Sounds fun. They meet this weekend or something?"

"Yeah, yeah! In the quad! You'll go with me?"

"Sure Sefie , whatever you like." Irvine finished with a small laugh.

''''''''''''''''''

The next day, while Rinoa daydreamed of two men, while Selphie tried desperately to apologize for missing two days of class, and while Irvine planned his victim for the night, Seifer patiently awaited for the ticking clock to bring him to the end of his class.

As soon as Instructor Trepe released class, Seifer sat back and watched groups of students gather their items, leave or talk to Instructor Trepe. The last to come to the front of the class, prepared to leave, was Squall. Before he could exit however, Quistis called him to her desk.

Seifer, unfortunately, sat too far back in the class to hear exactly what the two were quietly discussing. All he knew is Squall nodded and left leaving him alone with Instructor Trepe and familiar anxiety of jealousy in his gut.

"What did you want with pretty boy?" Seifer sneered as he came forth towards Quistis.

Instructor Trepe smiled pleasantly and pushed her hair behind her ear and out of her way. "Oh nothing of terrible consequence, we were discussing going to the fire cavern for the field exam. I'm going along with him for support."

A growl almost escaped Seifer as he darted an angry glare. His strong self-control held in the growl but the glare intensified as creases came across his sharp face. "Why?" He asked bitterly.

"I go with any student who feels more comfortable with support. In fact, I promised we'd go too, didn't I?"

"Pretty boy asked for help?" Seifer laughed and his expression loosened, "Instructor, don't insult me. I don't need any support."

Quistis continued to smile, "Don't worry Seifer, after what I've seen what you're capable of I'd be the last to underestimate you, but let's not be precarious, you and Squall hold the record for being in Dr. Kadowaki's office. No need to get so defensive, Squall too didn't ask for my help."

"Then why are you?" Seifer retorted almost instantly.

Slightly taken aback by Seifer's hasty response, Quistis took a brief moment and relaxed. She brushed off Seifer's question, "Anyways let's say we leave for the cavern Saturday morning?"

Seifer despised Quistis' unsubtle approach to avoiding him. Subtle or not, the idea she avoided it at all irritated him.

"Don't worry about your session today, I'll just see you this weekend. I'm busy taking students over to the fire caven. Meet me Saturday morning, by the gate and don't be late."

'''''''''''''''

Selphie hobbled back to her room pleased that she received Matron's forgiveness. Guilt twisted within her insides, as she knew she'd lied. She explained to Matron that'd she'd felt ill and took rest for the two days of class that she missed. Matron forgave her and asked that she inform her next time it happened.

The only solace Selphie took in her lie to one of the kindest people she's come to meet was the fact she actually was too ill to come back to Garden. Selphie thought it wise to keep the events that occurred a secret. She felt too embarrassed and ashamed to reveal her dirty history to classy people like Matron and Irvine.

However, throughout the day the injury on her thigh gave her more pain and new agitations. The site became infested with a terrible itch, and other irritations like a burning pain and soreness.

Selphie sat herself on her bed and laid her legs flat in front of her. Nervously, her hands reached the hem of her school uniform skirt. Careful not to put more pressure on her bandaged area, Selphie curled the cloth in her hands and rolled her skirt up past half of her thigh. The bandage that covered her wound no longer revealed itself as a clean white. A dingy brown and dark maroon stained even the outmost layer.

Still uneasy and scared to continued and lay eyes once again on the terrible scar, Selphie used two fingers to grasp a loose end of the wrapping of bandages. She slowly pulled her arm outwards slowly unraveling the dirtied strips of cloth.

Too busy and concentrated on her task, Selphie didn't hear anyone enter the dorm. It was only when her door squeaked open and face appeared calling her name—

"Selphie what happened to you?!"— did she drop her bandages and look up, embarrassed, ashamed, and mortified.

-------------------


	25. Chapter 24

"_Beautiful boy!"_

_Beautiful World  
__Chapter Twenty-Four_

"Selphie?" Irvine's frantic voice broke Selphie's train of thought as he zoomed into her room and to her side. He hesitantly let his hand over Selphie's, who clutched the blood stained padding over her thigh.

"Don't look at it!" Selphie screamed pulling her leg away and sliding her skirt back over it. She rubbed her face to smear away any tears of pain that felt like they were forming.

Irvine stood up and stared wide eye in fear. What happened and why wouldn't Selphie explain? He shook his head and pulled himself out of his hastily forming thoughts. "Selphie, wha' happened!? Are ya in pain? Why didn't ya tell me?"

Nervously, Selphie released her grip on her clothes and looked over towards Irvine. She gulped loudly and hung her head, ashamed. "It happened yesterday— or maybe the day before. I don't really remember."

"On your way back to Garden? Selphie why didn't ya tell someone!" Irvine didn't realize he'd been yelling at Selphie since he walked in. He glanced over at her face drooping towards the ground. Her eyes glistened with tears. Bashfully, Irvine rubbed his neck and sat down. He gently put his hand over Selphie's and spoke again, "It's alright, and this ain't a problem. Why don'tcha show me first."

"No!" Selphie persisted grabbing her skirt again.

Irvine returned to his feet and let Selphie bury her face into her knees, refusing to meet eyes with him. Thoughts floated through his head on reasons why Selphie was being so secretive. Then again, Selphie had never really come clean about anything in her past, it just so happened Irvine was a good guesser.

Whether Selphie wanted to share the events that led to her injury or not, Irvine lost interest. He knew the priority was to take care of her wound. Without another word, Irvine knelt down and scooped Selphie's light bodice into his arms.

"What're you doing?" She asked panicked.

"We're going to Dr. Kadowaki to have this looked at. You could be real hurt."

Selphie, uncomfortable being lifted in her current state grasped onto Irvine and let her legs dangle, her injured one suspend a little higher than the other did. As Irvine walked along, Selphie rested her head against his broad chest and reminisced about the times she'd found herself like this, warm and safe in someone's arms.

The first time it ever occurred, was when she was much younger in the front of a grand Trabian hotel coughing her lungs out, and facing death straight in the eye. Mr. Devin leapt in and took her straight to the hospital taking her life into a set of twists and turns of all emotions. Now Irvine held her, once before for fun, but this time because he wanted to help her. The irony that the first man who had saved her was now the reason another man was holding her on their way to aide pained Selphie's heart.

She never understood why Devin showed her kindness in the beginning. The ladies at the fountain assumed it was because of her "cute face". Perhaps they were right, however Selphie would never know the true reason Devin took a fondness to her, like she would never truly understand why Irvine cared enough to carry her to the infirmary when she'd never done anything for him.

"Dr. Kadowaki!" Irvine called in as he swept passed the electronic doors zooming open.

Selphie hadn't ever met the doctor here in Balamb Garden. On several occasions, she'd seen one in Trabia. Mr. Devin ordered her to visit, have checkups and procedures, from a certain physician often. Despite the fact, the doctor was kind, his procedures always left Selphie feeling uneasy or in pain. It was due to the past recollections that Selphie jerked when Irvine set her down on a cot in front of the doctor's desk.

"What's wrong?" Dr. Kadowaki snapped as she revealed herself coming from a white curtain lined section of the infirmary.

"My friend here has an injury and she won't let me see it." Irvine explained throwing his hands as if showcasing Selphie.

Dr. Kadowaki stroked her chin and advanced toward Selphie. She stared into her eyes and scanned for any obvious detection of what Irvine referenced. "Alright, let's have a look shall we?"

Selphie stubbornly shook her head and gripped the end of her skirt, holding it in place.

"Irvine, bring her over to the observation room." Dr. Kadowaki said responsively as she motioned Irvine into a smaller room only a few feet away.

With ease, Irvine lifted Selphie back up, a little too quickly, for Selphie yelped in pain as her leg bounced up. "Sorry Sefie—" Irvine embarrassedly said. Selphie didn't reply but she dug her fingers deep into him and held herself in his arms as tightly as she could manage. Even as Irvine tried to set her down in the wider cot in the observation room, Selphie needed to be fought before she let go of him.

"A little privacy, if you'd please Irvine." Dr. Kadowaki continued.

Irvine bowed his head politely and stepped by the exit. He shined a reassuring smile to Selphie who sat frighteningly on the cot, and left the room.

With Irvine gone, the air in the observation room felt heavy. Selphie kept her hands firmly over her skirt determined to keep its secret underneath hidden. Dr. Kadowaki came to Selphie's side and spoke softly, "I can't help you if you don't show me what happened."

Selphie's grip tightened as she shook her head miserably. "I don't wanna—"

Dr. Kadowaki sat herself before Selphie on the cot and smiled. Her wrinkled face from age and stress creased and curled and although it didn't appear pretty, it seemed genuine and safe. "Don't worry, no one will know but me. If you're worried about me judging you, don't. I've seen it all. Nothing surprises me anymore, so you can relax. My job here is to help you when you're hurt. How it happened is not my concern, or my worry." The doctor returned to her feet and watched Selphie's, unconvinced still, gingerly playing with the ends of her uniform. "Or if you don't, we'll have to end up cutting your leg off from infection!"

Selphie gasped frantically and released the hold on her clothes.

"That's much better." Dr. Kadowaki chuckled as she gently pushed Selphie's skirt higher up her thigh. She pulled out small medical scissors from a pocket in her white coat and cut through the thick bandaging. As the two expected, not only was the grotesque scar still there, but it appeared crusty and a variety of yellows and reds. "Still new, and it's not bad. Yet."

Suspended on a table behind the doctor, sat an assortment of cotton swabs, gauze, and other random utensils necessary for wound addressing. Dr. Kadowaki quietly went to work pouring a clear liquid over some cotton balls. She held it over Selphie's scar and looked up quickly to say, "I should tell you this is going to sting."

Before Selphie could protest, Dr. Kadowaki deftly moved her hand up and over the scar pushing away the forming crust. The first few cotton swabs stained and dirtied quickly. They were disposed of and more liquid and new swabs took their place. Selphie cried out, as the stinging didn't terminate regardless of the cotton balls being present. The liquid wet over her bloody wound burned.

"I'm almost done cleaning it." The doctor muttered swiping another liquid that stained Selphie's thigh a dark color. Selphie continued to cry and didn't notice Dr. Kadowaki's skilled hands pressing fresh gauze and wrapping her thigh up neatly. "There, all done."

Sniffling, Selphie nodded and pulled her skirt over her thigh again. She looked up to the doctor miserably and forced a sort of acknowledgement of gratitude. Dr. Kadowaki seemed to understand, for she nodded her head in return.

"I am curious, did you do that yourself or did something happen?" Dr. Kadowaki asked not realizing her voice was loud enough for Irvine outside to hear.

"A monster." Selphie replied.

Dr. Kadowaki saw the scar and knew no monster could have made such an attack. She simply nodded in understanding that Selphie didn't want to share and took her leave. "You can take her now Irvine. Make sure she comes back routinely to get it cleaned, especially in the near future while it's still an open wound. No extra pressure on her leg, and keep her off her feet as much as possible."

"Yes ma'am!" Irvine replied cheerily as he reappeared in the observation room. He laid eyes on the red eyed freshly tear stricken Selphie. Embarrassed, Irvine rubbed the back of his neck and advanced towards his friend slowly. "Sorry Sefie, I didn't want ya to get hurt none. But I also didn't want ya losing your leg!"

"It's okay Irvy." Selphie said as she used her sleeve to wipe her running nose.

Irvine lifted Selphie in his arms again and smiled at her, "Don't worry I'll make it up to ya. I'll take good care of ya!" He pressed his forehead to hers.

Instead of returning Irvine's kind and adoring embrace, Selphie sat stoically in his arms as days the cold Trabian air blew in her mind.

_Selphie breathed out watching the white float above her as a man came into view. His hair was slick black and he wore a handsome coat and glossy leather gloves. He knelt down, grasped her by the shoulders, and brought his lips very near her ears. "Don't worry." He whispered._

'''''''''''''''''

The rest of the week slipped as water held in someone's palm. The bright early sun of the weekend shined over Balamb Garden filling its halls with golden light. Actually, it already struck noon, of course, late night Irvine the rendezvous master didn't know that.

When Irvine finally did wake up, it was to the sound of Selphie's persistent knocking. Despite the events from the day or so before, Selphie was too excited and thrilled to be downtrodden by bad memories and injuries.

Irvine turned over in his bed and threw the sheets over his head protecting himself from the brightness of the day. The random girl beside him shifted, also shielding her face from the light.

"Yo Kinneas! Selphie is here for you!" Zell thundered while banging on Irvine's door.

Irvine's head shot up as he looked straight ahead at the entrance to his room, still closed, hiding his current state from Selphie and his roommate. He rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably and frowned at the girl lying beside him. With a problematic click of his tongue, Irvine got up and started tossing clothes on. "Yeah, I'll be right out! Gimme a minute!"

'''''''''''''''''

Selphie giggled hearing the haste in Irvine's voice. Obviously, Irvine forgot that they were joining the Student Festival Committee. She didn't expect him to still be sleeping however. She'd even finished her classes with Matron before arriving.

"You can sit down Selphie." Zell said politely as he plopped down on a chair with a book.

As one would normally, Selphie listened and quietly took a seat. She sat anxiously at the edge, fidgeting with her chair, and rocking back and forth. Her eyes scoured all around the room desperately looking for something to keep her attention. The walls were full of posters, some martial artists, and others snipers and cowboys. None were neatly stationed on the wall and most of them had pealing corners as if they'd been ignored to properly being tacked onto the wall.

A small sigh escaped Selphie as she looked at Zell. Carefully held in his massive hands was a book whose title read, _"Goodbye Puprunun_". A glint of curiosity took over as Selphie perked her head up excitedly. "That's a cool looking book! What's it about?"

Zell peered at Selphie oddly and chuckled, he folded the book closed to glance at its cover. Unsure of what it was that caused Selphie to remark it being "cool" Zell shrugged and leaned forward happy to explain. "It's really good, it's about this Chocobo. He wants to become a golden chocobo, even though it's just a legend and everyone knows you can only breed golden chocobos, not become one."

Selphie's eyes filled with wonder, she'd never seen or heard much about Chocobos. Some travelers rode them into town, but Trabia, especially the cities, never seemed to be a suitable place to raise a chocobo, so none stayed long. "What's a golden chocobo? I've never heard of that!"

"Well, I'd be happy to tell you!" Zell said clasping his hands together. "You see, normally a chocobo is naturally able to just cross flat terrain. Adaptation and evolution gives chocobos of today the ability to cross long distances of most land platforms and most distances in shallow water. Legend has it that were colorful chocobos once, that lived in hidden chocobo forests. These chocobos were born with special gifts that you could tell based on the color of their feathers. Green chocobos for instance, could run through forests, and blue chocobos can cross rivers, even deep ones."

"And a golden one? What does that one do?" Selphie asked, almost begging Zell to continue.

Zell smiled widely, grateful someone for the first time enjoyed his lectures and wanted to hear more of what he had to say. "Golden chocobos are the best, and the most rare. They can fly!"

"No one cares about chocobos Zell." Irvine yawned bored as he strutted out of his room.

"That's not true! I care!" Selphie squeaked defiantly. She stood up proudly and stretched her neck out as to bring her head as close as she could to Irvine. She spun on her heels and turned her attention excitedly back to Zell. Despite her confident appearance, Selphie's heart raced in acknowledging her deliberate defiance. "Go a-ahead Zell!" Selphie continued, trying to remain calm.

Zell nodded happily and opened his mouth ready to explain more, before Irvine stepped in again.

"Doesn't matter, we got plans Zell." Irvine nudged Selphie gently causing her to look back and meet eyes with him, "We got plans right?"

Ecstatic that Irvine didn't appear upset from her outburst, she nodded immediately with her mind rekindled of her earlier excitement. "That's right! We're joining the Student Festival Committee!" Selphie said returning her view to Zell.

Irvine, obviously, forgot the exact plans. As he heard Selphie reiterate them, his face fell. Selphie already turned her focus back to Zell and only he saw the cowboy sink in his facial expression. Zell chuckled as Selphie offered him to join them.

"Yeah that'd be great! D'mind if I bring Amy?" Zell replied showing far more enthusiasm for the event than Irvine now.

Selphie nodded cheerfully, "Of course! Nida was trying to get as many people as he could. Plus I think we'll have a lot of fun!"

Irvine rubbed the back of his neck not listening to Zell and Selphie's joyful chatter but added in with as much false amiability as he could muster, "Hey you know I bet Rinoa would love to join us too! So why don't you two grab Amy and talk about chocobos and I'll bring Rinoa!"

Selphie couldn't help but giggle noticing immediately Irvine didn't appear too excited and still found the chocobo conversation nonsense. Regardless, Selphie had come to enjoy Rinoa's company and friendship too much to not take Irvine seriously. "Yeah that sounds great! This is going so well! Booyaka!"

Both Irvine and Zell stared at Selphie in silence responding to the odd sound effect she'd just made.

"What?" Selphie asked innocently, "It's something I'm trying to start…"

* * *

After the trio separated on their different routes to the Quad where the Student Festival Committee met, Irvine headed straight to Rinoa's dorm, where he did expect to invite Rinoa to come along, but first kill as much time as he could.

Irvine let himself in once he reached Rinoa and Selphie's dorm. Inside, Rinoa scurried along in her school uniform with Angelo at her ankles, ignored. She ran her fingers through her shiny black hair and tied it back loosely, she then leaned over the study table that covered most the dorm's front room and began cleaning a large flat object that lay on top of it.

"Hey Rinoa!" Irvine said cheerfully breaking Rinoa from her fully occupied hypnosis.

"Oh, hi there Irvine." Rinoa sighed as she dropped her polishing cloth on what Irvine learned was her weapon, a blaster edge, as he approached closer. "Sorry, I didn't even hear you walk in. I'm really nervous, today I was going to go ahead and try my hand out at the fire cavern for my field exam."

Irvine clicked his tongue and took a seat. He relaxed letting his legs cross on top of the study table forcing him to lean on the back legs of his chair. "So you're busy today? That sucks, I wanted to see if you'd join the Student Festival Committee with me."

Rinoa stopped in her preparations and raised a curious brow to Irvine. "What? Did I hear you correctly? Did you say **you **were going to join the Student Festival Committee?"

"That's right!"

"Why?"

For a reason Irvine didn't quite know or understand, Rinoa seemed slightly cross. "Selphie thought it'd be fun. She asked me to come along." He replied with a shrug.

"I knew it!" Rinoa squinted her eyes narrowly and crossed her arms. The two of them exchanged glances, Irvine simply mimicking Rinoa. With a sigh, Rinoa took a seat before her friend and faced her eyes towards a wall averting her view from Irvine. "Look there's no easy way to explain this, so bare with me." Rinoa hung her head and finally made herself look at Irvine again, "I don't think you should hang out with Selphie anymore."

Irvine stood up immediately, appalled on several levels, "What?! What's the big idea?"

"Irvine, just listen to me!" Rinoa cried, her face coming across as sad and serious at the same time. "It's just, she likes you. I can tell, and you can't possibly tell me you're not interested in her."

Irvine raised an eyebrow, "What's your point?"

A small silent snort passed through Rinoa as she squinted her eyes again, "The point is, she's been hurt enough by people. I know you, and you are just going to be like all the other guys in her life. Screw her once and be gone, except you're probably not going to pay her." Rinoa came to her feet and stepped closer to Irvine. She rested her hands gently on his shoulders and met eyes with him. "I'm really starting to like Selphie, and I'm worried about her. She shouldn't be relying on men for happiness right now, she's been hurt too much by them, but if she were, then I hate to say it but—" She gave a small shrug, "You're just not boyfriend material. You'll lose interest in her like you do with all girls after you get some action."

"This one is different! Look what I've done for her! You think I do all this just to have another one-night stand?" Irvine threw Rinoa's hands off him and stepped away angrily. He became silent for a minute taking in what he just said, "I-I mean, you got nothing to worry about. I don't even think of Selphie like that. I just wanted to help her, that's all!"

Rinoa pushed some hair behind her ear and nodded, "I know you've done a lot for her. She appreciates it I know; I mean she defends you behind your back. I don't even do that." Rinoa smiled at her small phrase of sarcasm. "But that's all the more reason to stay away from her. She likes you because of all you've done, whether you want her or not you'll hurt her. Do her a favor and stay away, as much as you can anyways."

"Fine, don't join the committee!" Irvine snapped, and without another word, he rushed out.

* * *

Slightly irritated with Rinoa's observations and orders, Irvine attempted on concentrating on the colorful tiles on the floor. Rinoa's very keen and understandable statements echoed through his head. Lost in thought Irvine didn't notice he'd reached the Quad and came crashing into his friend who'd eagerly been awaiting his arrival.

Selphie stumbled back a bit to regain her balance and giggled once Irvine realized what'd he done. He rubbed the back of his neck bashfully and patted Selpie's shoulder, "Sorry I'm late. Rinoa couldn't make it today— maybe 'nother time."

A small pout touched Selphie's lips, "I really wanted Rinoa to come too." She turned around and shrugged, "Oh well, more work for us then!" With a small leap into the air, Selphie lunged forward to where a very small congregation of people stood.

The Quad of Balamb Garden stationed itself on the edge of the entire building. Like the Training Center, it mimicked the outdoors with sand covering the floors. The Quad itself structured itself as a large balcony. It most likely couldn't hold the entire student body on its grounds but a great crowd could comfortably lounge there.

Currently, a small stage stood in the center of the sanded area with a scrawny girl giving out orders to a group of three. The group consisted of Zell, Amy, and Nida. Irvine sighed as he watched Selphie enthusiastically join the group. As she stood proudly beside Zell, she motioned Irvine to follow.

"Okay guys, the SeeD Inauguration Ball could be any day now, so we, the Student Festival Committee, need to prepared on call to throw this on! So today, we'll start with decorations and think out as much planning as we can. I think the best way to do this is split up into groups, so who wants to decorate?"

Selphie's hand shot in the air, "Oh, oh I want too!" She cried too happily.

"Okay, er Selphie right? Okay you start decorations. Anyone else?"

Irvine felt only too tempted to follow Selphie's lead and work by her side all day but Rinoa's words burned freshly in his mind. He sighed and looked away.

"I'll help!" Zell volunteered clasping his hands together.

Nida smiled and raised his hand as well, "I think I'd like to join them as well."

The girl on the stage nodded with a small sigh, "Does no one want to help me plan and organize?"

Amy was first to reply joyfully offering her loyal services in organization. Despite the fact Irvine knew he'd much rather tack streamers and balloons to the wall, he couldn't spend too much time with Selphie. Along with Amy, Irvine raised his hand.

"Okay great! Let's split up, Nida you take the decoration crew to that side," The girl pointed to the far end, which hung over the great expanse and extenuated the great height of the Quad from the ground below. "And the rest of you stay put and we'll start discussing all the fantastic details!"

Selphie watched Irvine with a sad smile as she followed a very excited Zell and Nida. Irvine didn't bother to burden himself with Selphie's disappointment and kept his eyes focused on the thin leader descending from the stage to him and Amy.

"So I guess we can start by building the balloon arches. Zell, are you any good at carpeting?" Nida asked as he discussed plans with Zell.

"Am I? I'm Balamb's favorite handy man! I used to help Ma with all sorts of things! Leave it to me!" Zell stamped his chest proudly as he observed the stash of wood and tools neatly laid out before them. Nida and Zell both got to work assembling the wooden planks as they needed to be in order to frame an arch.

Nida, who'd never actually had helpers joining the committee fell enwrapped with Zell's enthusiasm, he didn't notice Selphie standing very sadly several feet away for a quite a few minutes. "Hey Selphie," He called as he approached her.

Selphie blinked and fell out of her daze and nodded in response. Nida smiled and held his hand forward. Confused, Selphie tilted her head trying to guess what the significance appeared to be. At this, Nida laughed and revealed a champagne colored balloon in his palm. "For a balloon arch we need actual balloons. All you do is drop one of these in each balloon," With that, Nida produced a small feather in his other hand.

Intrigued, Selphie lifted a finger tempted to touch it. "What is it?" She asked, dazzled.

"Just a shear feather. Drop it in the balloon and it'll float. Tie up the balloon's end and tie it to some string so it doesn't fly away. You could attempt to blow these all yourself, but I believe you'd be exhausted. Plus, balloons that are filled up by plain air deflate in a day or two. This way we can preserve this balloon arch a month!"

After Nida concluded his explanation, he watched a small grin as Selphie carefully placed a shear feather in the narrow opening of the balloon's neck. The balloon immediately swelled and produced a fluttering sound. Selphie gasped as Nida quickly tied the neck closed before the air escaped. He handed the sphere to Selphie gently but her small hands let it fly away.

Nida clicked his tongue slightly upset, but Selphie rushed after it as it flew far from the Quad. As it rose higher and higher into the sky, Selphie stopped at the edge of the Quad's sanded ground and watched as the golden orb flew freely away. The view from the Quad suddenly became apparent. It overlooked the sea of green fields and revealed the bluest skies Selphie ever saw.

Selphie felt lost in the scenery. Her entire body felt as light as the champagne balloon lifting endlessly into the expanse. Without conscious thought Selphie lifted her foot over the edge of the Quad, as though still trying to follow the balloon.

"SELPHIE!"

Irvine grasped Selphie's delicate little hand and yanked her away from the cliff drop making her fall a few feet away. "You could've killed yourself!" Selphie blinked in shock unsure of how to respond. Her heart rate rose as she realized Irvine actually seemed angry with her.

While Irvine and Selphie sat in a staring match, the rest of the committee joined them in surprise. "What happened?" The small girl who spoke to the rest of the group earlier asked frantically.

Nida shook his head and walked over to Selphie. He lent a hand and helped her back to her feet. "Nothing Wimbly, Selphie here simply tried to catch that balloon." Nonchalantly, Nida handed Selphie a thin string and explained, "Next time tie it up quick or it'll fly away." After he received an understood nod from Selphie he turned around to a worked up Irvine and raised his eyebrow, "What exactly is your issue, Kinneas?"

Irvine looked as though he'd growl and bite Nida's very head off, but Wimbly interrupted him before he could. "Whatever happened, no one's hurt let's get back to what we were doing. Get those balloons blown up, alright Selphie?" Selphie hesitantly nodded to Wimbly as she returned to the pile of balloons stationed close to Zell and Nida's project.

The rest of the group parted leaving Irvine alone. His face relaxed as he eyed Selphie solemnly tying balloons up. With a small sigh, he realized almost too well his aggravation derived from him seeing truth in Rinoa's words. He had to get his mind off Selphie, somehow.

* * *

Rinoa stepped out of the fire cavern pleased with herself. Angelo licked at her heels as he waited for Rinoa to reward him for his bravery. Unfortunately for Angelo, Rinoa found herself too absorbed in her own accomplishment of attaining her fire G.F. to think twice about Angelo. She smiled widely as she bade farewell to the two Garden Faculty members that guarded the entrance of the cavern.

Merrily, Rinoa trotted down the rocky path that led her back to the great Balamb fields. She stopped short as she saw two figures walking towards her. She stood still as the figures came closer and appeared more clear.

The figures turned out to be a casually dressed Instructor Trepe and Squall. Rinoa's eyes widened and her heart skipped a beat as she laid eyes on Squall. Realizing her excitement, she bit her lip guiltily, still standing in place unsure of what to do exactly.

"Hello Rinoa." Quistis greeted politely as she and Squall halted.

"Instructor Trepe! Squall! Hi!" Spat Rinoa, in haste. "You here for your field exam, Squall?" She continued to say in her rapid tone of voice.

"Yeah, how'd you do?" Squall asked.

"I passed! I'm a proud owner of a fire G.F! Let's celebrate after you pass too, okay?"

Squall showed a small smile and nodded, "Sounds like fun." Although a normal person would assume from Squall's low and emotionless way of talking, he was joking, Rinoa could tell for the first time he meant it.

She beamed and bowed her head politely to Quistis. "Have fun, Instructor!"

Quistis squinted her eyes and allowed herself a wry smile, "Thank you, Rinoa. If you could please, send your boyfriend a message for me?"

Rinoa's excitement died at that moment, as she blushed ashamed. "O-of course Instructor."

"Just let him know, I'll have to reschedule our trip to the cavern. A few more students came before him and I had to attend to them." Quistis continued in a professional tone.

Squall nodded his head as a means of saying goodbye as Quistis walked on forward. Rinoa watched despairingly as the two became once again colorful blurs in the distance. Guilt pitted in her stomach as she continued to walk back to Garden.

* * *

Irvine didn't listen much to Amy and Wimbly's rambling about the banquet. They discussed music, food, certain dances, changes to decorations, tools— and somehow Irvine found himself completely lost.

Amy felt refreshed to finally put her input into a project. Having spent so much of her time committed to the Library Committee, she found Wimbly's appreciation enjoyable. Wimbly too, was overly happy to have company. Usually the committee consisted of her and her brother if she was able to convince to join her. Busy in their planning, they didn't even notice Irvine not giving any actual advice, but rather saying "That's great" and "Sounds like a plan" every now and then.

As the sun began to sink and painted a pink and golden hue over the Quad, Amy announced she had to report to the library. Zell happily dismissed himself with her and left Selphie alone with Nida, and Irvine with Wimbly.

Clicking his tongue confused, Irvine thought of a new means to distract him. It was foolish to think he'd actually be able to talk to Wimbly about party planning. He eyed Wimbly who continued to write even without Irvine's input.

_She'll have to do…_ Irvine thought. "Hey Wimbly, ya know I'm real tired from all this planning. Whatcha say you and I grab something to drink at the cafeteria?"

Wimbly gathered her papers and looked to Irvine. He shined his famous flirty smile leaving Wimbly red in the face. "Well, eh heh, we can still discuss plans right?"

Irvine put an arm in a friendly manner around Wimbly's shoulders, "Of course we can!"

* * *

Selphie enjoyed her day as much as she could. Zell and Nida were obviously entertaining and kept her laughing and away from the thought that Irvine may be angry with her. After Zell left, Wimbly called Nida over to her and Irvine.

Curious, Selphie watched as the two spoke, mute to her. After a moment, Irvine and Wimbly walked out of the Quad, and Nida returned back to help Selphie with the balloons. A tear of mix sadness and fear formed in Selphie's eye as she felt confirmed Irvine truly was angry.

Nida took a seat beside dainty little Selphie went back to dropping shear feathers into balloons. A good portion of the Quad flourished with balloons suspended by thread waving madly in the wind. As Nida added another balloon to the collection, he noticed Selphie noticeably fell in her mood. "What's wrong Selphie?" He asked politely.

"Oh sorry— I just thought or I think Irvy might be mad at me." Selphie said trying hard to stifle her sniffles.

"That's ridiculous! How could Irvine ever be mad at gentle thing like you? Don't worry Selphie, if you're talking about that scene earlier I'm sure he was just worried you would fall. He probably wanted to look dashing and heroic around you. That's his style." Nida said nudging her gently. "And clearly his charm worked on Wimbly, but don't worry she's too smart for Kinneas."

Selphie didn't quite understand what Nida was referring too, but she took solace in what he said. "Thanks Nida."

"Anytime, come on, let's be done with balloons for today. I'll see you next meeting." Nida bowed his head and rushed out of the Quad, happy to be done for the day.

Selphie felt like lingering, the golden sun painted shadows along the sand. She viewed the translucent balloons shining as they swayed with the breeze. A small smile touched Selphie's lips. Slowly she advanced to the huge collection of balloons and grasped a single string. She led the balloon to the edge of the Quad and heaved in a great breath.

_I wonder if I could fly with this balloon, free… _Almost drunk from the beautiful landscape stories under her feet, Selphie lifted her arms holding the balloon high over her head.

_I want to be free, like a bird! Like this balloon…_

She gently lifted a foot off the ground.

* * *

Hope you're enjoying!


	26. Chapter 25

_"Jibun no utsukushisa mada shiranai no"  
__("Still you don't realize your own beauty")_

_Beautiful World  
__Chapter Twenty-Five_

Selphie felt the cool twilight breeze blow through hair and between the folds of her clothes. Her foot, suspended in the air, moved back as she replanted it to the ground. Opening her eyes to the golden blazed sunset, Selphie looked longingly at the open free air.

"What're you doing Selphie?"

With a jerk of shock, Selphie turned around and spotted Nida, who'd returned. She smiled nervously and shook her head. "N-nothing! Just watching the sunset, it's so pretty."

Nida slowly walked up and perched himself beside Selphie forcing his view to be identical to his neighbor's. "Indeed it is. I've never really taken notice. This is a great spot." He turned his attention back to Selphie, "Why, though, are you still here? Aren't you tired? We've been working all day."

"I just liked that balloon, you know the one that I let go?" Selphie said quietly.

"Don't worry about it, there's hundreds more. It was just one balloon." Replied Nida with a small chuckle.

Selphie turned her head and shined a cute smile, "Tee-hee, then it's okay right?"

"That's right, so it will be just fine. We should have plenty for the decorations."

"For the Ball, that's right! Oh I can't wait, it'll be soooo pretty."

'''''''''''''''''''

As the day ended, Rinoa settled down in her room and stretched out her legs. She was a bit distressed from the fact she never met Squall up again for the day. Instead, she spent the day in the Training Center waiting for his idea of celebration.

After hours of pointless Grat slaughtering, Rinoa finally gave up and returned to her dorm. Bored and unsettled from the day, she lay on her bed, ignored her whimpering dog, and stared at the ceiling.

"Hey Rinoa." Came Seifer's voice. Rinoa shot her head up and watched her boyfriend allow himself entry into the dorm, and eventually her room.

"Oh hi Seifer." She replied, very much unenthusiastically. Sitting up straight, she moved her legs aside making room for Seifer to take a seat beside her. He sat down, leaned back and resisted his head against the wall behind him. "Oh right, Seifer—" Rinoa started remembering something. Seifer turned and rose an eyebrow gesturing he was listening. "I didn't see you earlier, but Instructor Trepe said she was too busy to go with you to the Fire Cavern."

Seifer tilted his head towards his chest and spread his arms out to support his position. "Heh," he let out a small chuckle, "that was today huh? Good thing she bailed, I completely forgot."

Rinoa blinked confused, "How could you forget? It's kind of important. Where were you all day then?"

"I was out—training." Seifer said flatly.

"I was in the training center almost all day, I didn't see you." Rinoa commented still confused and oblivious.

"That's because I was outside of Balamb Garden." Seifer replied gritting his teeth angrily.

Still thinking aloud Rinoa flopped her legs out straight and hid her face upon them, "That's odd. Why were you out there?"

"What does it matter? You didn't bother to find me and tell me anyways! How did you even bump into Instructor Trepe?" Seifer snapped almost instantly, so quickly it appeared Rinoa didn't even finish her question.

Rinoa lifted her head up with a bizarre expression on her face indicating she didn't much appreciate Seifer's attitude. With a small sigh, she still replied. "I saw her on my way back from the Fire Cavern." She yawned and laid back, her eyes set on Seifer who had tensed significantly compared to what he looked like when he first walked in.

Still gnashing his teeth together, Seifer breathed in carefully trying to calm down. "So, you went to the Fire Cavern. How'd you do?"

"Passed." Rinoa said without any excitement.

Silence passed between the two as very different thoughts flowed through their minds. Rinoa thought of how her excitement had been so much greater when she was planning on celebrating it with Squall. Seifer tried to hold back his anger for Quistis, who he'd waited for all day long. Neither of them noticed the awkward quiet in the room. Lost in their own mentalities, they barely noticed Selphie who entered cheerfully and retired to her room.

Despite the fact that the last time Seifer and Rinoa were together, they were intimate and Irvine disturbed them, the two didn't seem the least bit heartbroken. That— and they weren't trying to make up for lost time.

"So, what's up?" Rinoa asked, staring at the ceiling again.

"Congrats on passing." Seifer replied, mirroring Rinoa's amount of emotion.

"Thanks."

Another few moments carried on with the lack of conversation. Rinoa turned her head and reached her hand out to pet Angelo on the head. Seifer slid back so he half lay on the bed. "Did Selphie come back yet?" Rinoa asked bluntly.

"I think so."

"I didn't even hear her come in."

The stillness started irritating Seifer. He had to do something to entertain himself. He'd taken the first step by coming to Rinoa's. Obviously, the next move was his as well. With a forced grin, Seifer sat up straight. "I think we should do something, since you passed your test."

Rinoa blinked and sat up straight, "Really?" She asked happily.

"Yeah, anything you want. If you ask me though, none of my ideas involves us leaving this room." Seifer said with some emotion returning a sly smile to his lips.

Giggling slightly Rinoa sighed and crawled closer to Seifer. She pressed her lips to his cheek and rested her head against his shoulder. "This room? I was thinking this bed."

"I like where you're going," Seifer said laughing.

Hugging Seifer tightly for a minute, Rinoa stared into his emerald eyes and grinned. "Thanks Seifer. I've just really wanted to hear you say something like that for awhile." She paused and widened her eyes, "Not you being a pervert or something! Just that you want to spend some time with me."

Seifer brought a hand to Rinoa's white cheek, "Yeah, I know how you feel." He leaned in and kissed her gently. However, while close to his girlfriend he heard Quistis' voice in the back of his head.

_"I told you Seifer, all she wanted was attention." _

Still in the middle of a kiss, Seifer shot his eyes upon and let his view dart around the room. _What the hell? Get out of my head, I haven't had any for awhile now! Get lost! _He relaxed his eyes and wrapped an arm around Rinoa while she mimicked his actions.

_"Just like all you want is a little attention, attention you feel you deserve but Squall keeps getting."_

_You bitch! Stop talking to me!! Fantasies are fun but this is sick! _

_"I prefer you thanking me for my advice. I much rather hear praise than vulgar cursing."_

_Not in a million years Instructor! Go have your midnight shack ups with Squall and leave me to the one thing Squall can't have his hands on. _

_"If that is what you truly believe…"_

Seifer pulled away from Rinoa who looked at him innocently and confused. "What's wrong?"

Shaking his head from the awkward mental conversation, Seifer looked away and focused. "It's nothing." He returned his gaze to Rinoa's field of vision. "Listen, this isn't real celebrating. How about Rajin, Fujin and I take you out someplace really nice tomorrow?"

Rinoa laughed and scooted back a bit, "I haven't spent time with the Disciplinary Committee in awhile. That sounds like fun."

"Good," Seifer stood up and brushed his clothes off.

"You don't have to go right now, I still don't have a problem with plan A. " Rinoa added with a cute snicker.

Seifer halted at the door and gritted his teeth again, "I'll take you up on that tomorrow as well." He waved goodnight and let himself out, thinking the whole time: _there is no way in hell I'm having sex with Rinoa with Instructor Trepe in my head the whole time_. _That's just plain wierd._

* * *

Irvine blinked his eyes and adjusted to the morning light in the room. Still blurry eyed, he scanned the room, including the spot on the bed where he thought Wimbly occupied. Noticing he was alone in the bed, he stared forward nearer to his room door.

Wimbly shuffled with her skirt and struggled to change in silence. Trying hard not to laugh, Irvine watched while Wimbly suited up and grunting unhappily with her disheveled hair and wrinkled uniform.

He thought he'd seen it all, but watching a woman trying to escape him before he woke up was new. Still curious on why Wimbly seemed to be rushing away from him, Irvine cleared his throat loudly.

Embarrassed, Wimbly stopped instantly. She looked up, gasped and turned around slowly to see Irvine, sitting straight in his bed with a wry smile.

"H-hi Irvine." She said nervously.

"Good mornin' Wimbly, where ya off too?"

Wimbly stare Irvine in the eye in silence. After a few moments passed, she exhaled in distress and sat on the corner of the bed. "Oh Irvine I'm sorry! I'm just not in the position of having a boyfriend right now. It's not you, you were incredible. It's the Student Festival Committee, it just takes so much effort and work! I mean you think yesterday was hard? That's me everyday all day. I used have the whole committee work that hard but they all quit so I'm trying to take it easy with a new group. I mean it's just so stressful making everything work out! I just don't have time for giving up every night, or going on dates. I mean I barely have time for class work. I'm so sorry, you understand right?"

"Yeah of cour—" Irvine paused. Although this situation was ideal for him, he decided to string it out for a bit. "I mean, you're killing me. I thought we had fun last night. You enjoyed right?"

Releasing a loud sigh, Wimbly grasped Irvine's hand. "Oh Irvine I did! I just can't give you the time you need. I mean last night was just what the doctor ordered, but I got to face the music. I don't have time for this kind of thing every night! You must have some agenda, maybe making SeeD or something? I know you're busy too. So let's just keep this between you and me and we'll go our separate ways?"

Blinking in shock of how absolutely prefect everything was going, Irvine deemed it was time to let it end. "Yeah— it's going to be hard to forget ya, and just pretend like nothing happened." He inhaled deeply, "But I guess I'll have to adjust."

"Oh thank you, Irvine. And believe me, I will not forget last night, you cowboy." Wimbly winked reaching over and placing Irvine's infamous black cowboy hat on her head.

"Don't touch the hat." Irvine snapped.

"Oh sorry!" Wimbly immediately returned the hat to its place on the ground and came to her feet. "I'll just go—now." With that, she tiptoed to the door and exited.

Irvine stretched his arms and relaxed, snuggling back under his sheets. The moments of peace of not having to scheme an escape from his hook-ups were certainly a rare instance. If he'd spent the night at Wimbly's dorm, he'd been gone hours before the sun rose. His peaceful meditation unfortunately didn't last long.

"Kinneas!"

Too irritated to respond to Zell, Irvine stubbornly stood up; realizing Zell would simply keep yelling if he didn't reply. He stretched his lanky body and walked out of his room.

"Kinneas, was that Wimbly Donner that just walked outta here?"

"Did it look like Wimbly Donner?" Irvine asked rubbing his eyes. He noticed Zell giving him an obviously annoyed expression. "Okay yeah it was Wimbly."

Zell groaned and scratched the back of his head, "Damn. I thought if you were going to get with someone from the Committee, I had my money on Selphie."

"Why do you say that?"

"I dunno, you two seem close. She still hangs out with you stating you haven't slept with her and broken her heart. Plus, she looks like she totally digs you. I thought that'd be an easy fish to catch, but I guess you prefer things being more of a challenge." Zell rubbed the back of his head, "Donner didn't seem to broken up. Does she know you two are over?"

Irvine ignored Zell's interest in Wimbly and returned to Selphie, "What do you mean an easy fish? You think Selphie is interested in me?"

Zell raised an eyebrow almost appalled Irvine could even fathom a question that a woman wanted him or not. "Dude, are you feeling okay?"

Realizing his own sloppy execution, Irvine jerked back and chuckled. "Heh, I mean of course she likes me, I mean she's actually interested in me. She is probably one of those girls who want a relationship. We're friends, might as well not complicate things, ya know… yet."

"Want a relationship? Wow that is what you called a spoiled girl, huh?" Zell let out a small laugh as he laced his shoes and tightened his gloves. "Hey listen though man, I got good news. I asked Amy out to the SeeD Inauguration Ball! She totally said yes!"

Irvine, who was walking towards his room stopped in his tracks. Never in his life had Zell beaten him at getting a date. He spun on his heels determined to remedy the situation. "Wait just a minute, ya asked a girl already? Shouldn't you pass first? I mean that'd be embarrassing if ya didn't."

A happy grin grew on Zell's face. Oddly enough, he could already tell the game Irvine was attempting to play. "All the more inspiration to pass then! Come on Kinneas, don't tell me you haven't asked out a girl yet?"

"I don't need to tag a girl, a'right? I could walk out right now, in my boxers, and get one." Irvine leaned back arrogantly and lifted his eyebrows spitefully at Zell who was holding back his laughter as well as he could. "I'm not going to, but I could. Remember that." Without another word, Irvine walked back into his room, shut the door, changed, and waited for Zell to leave before coming out again.

'''''''''''''''

Ever since the Field Exam for students hoping to qualify for the SeeD exam opened up, Quistis found herself busier than she ever imagined. Instructor Trepe was a rookie instructor finding herself doing all her duties for the first time. She'd easily become a favorite amongst students. For boys it was her youth and beauty, for girls it was intelligence and kindness.

This relationship wasn't one way, Quistis too, found herself favoring a few select students. Currently she found a fondness for Seifer Almasy, a student who made her used to fear coming to class due to his infuriating attitude. At this moment, she felt his attitude actually justified itself.

The other day Seifer and her were supposed to make time to head to the Fire Cavern, as she had promised a day prior to that. However, unfortunately for Seifer, another student that Quistis favored over him requested her assistance. Without assuring Seifer knew she canceled his appointment, she took her other student.

"Seifer, I realize you're upset but are you actually going to be silent this entire time?" Quistis asked with an exasperated groan.

Seifer halted and looked off to the distance, purposely avoiding his instructor's eye contact. "An entire day voided of conversation, just the sound of dying monsters and wind to keep your company. Sounds awfully familiar."

Quistis squinted her eyes, "You're quite something aren't you? I apologized to you, and yet you still are holding a grudge against me. Remember I'm your instructor Seifer, I don't have to be here. If you want me to stay with you, I suggest you hurry up and forgive me already!" She pressed a hand to her chest and sighed, relaxing her body.

"Fine, you're forgiven." Seifer replied quietly.

The two approached the rocky terrain signifying the Fire Cavern was very close. As the entrance came into view Quistis stopped Seifer and looked at him sternly, "I can't tell you anything until you've finished your test. Now, is there anything you'd like to ask me before we go any further?"

Staring into Quistis' brightly colored eyes, Seifer forgot for a moment what he was doing, or where he was. "Will you—"

"Yes?" Quistis responded eager to help her student.

Seifer shook his head, "--leave it to me, I'm fine." Pompously he lightly pushed Quistis out of his way and pranced forward to the entrance of the cavern.

'''''''''''''''

In a hurry to get his Field Exam out of the way, Irvine changed and got his weapon ready the minute he walked back into his room. Once Zell left, Irvine flew out as well.

There were few times in life Irvine ever found himself determined or in an ambitious for the sake of school. The first time he ever showed much excitement was when he first demonstrated his skills with firearms. Lately all his energy really went into chasing women around. Ever more recently, Selphie took all of his time and energy.

If he wasn't with her chatting, he was thinking of her. If they weren't in the field training, Irvine was imaging the short instances he'd catch her from falling. If he wasn't saving her from shenanigans, he was worrying about her falling into one. If he wasn't kissing another woman, or even if he was, he always thought of what kissing Selphie would be like.

Again lost in thought about Selphie, a much-unexpected interruption decided to throw him off. As Irvine crossed passed the cafeteria, a bright red colored hallway, a certain student jumped away from her crowds of 'friends' and trotted behind him.

"Irvine baby."

Blinking a few times, Irvine turned around to see Scarlet standing behind him, and her behind a group of disappointed boys. Scarlet nearly tip toed to Irvine, lacing her silky arms around Irvine's neck, and leaned her lips to Irvine's ear. "We need to talk, baby."

Irvine yanked her arms off him and stepped a few feet back, "Sorry, I'm kinda busy right now."

"I'm not in the mood to play chase with you Kinneas. Stand still and talk to me now, or I swear to Hyne I kick you heel first into the little cowboy. Don't think I won't!"

Unfortunately, for Irvine, Scarlet didn't actually kid about a matter like that. One too many times Dr. Kadowaki treated dumbfounded boys crying in feeble position about how they wished they'd taken her seriously. Squashing his hat tighter on his head, Irvine suffocated a groan and took a seat on a nearby bench. "Ya got five minutes."

Scarlet raised one her perfectly arched eyebrows and shined a sassy smile, "Wouldn't dream of asking for more." She glided to the bench and took a cozy seat beside her favorite cowboy. "I wanted to discuss, us."

"There is no us, there's you, me, and either one of our beds on a weekly basis." Irvine replied flatly, "And I haven't decided if there's anything more, yet."

"That's exactly what I wanted to discuss. I'm tired of it Irvine. I don't want to share you anymore and I'm tired of casual dating." Scarlet leaned back on the bench and crossed her slender legs. "I know I sound shocking but after enough boys and fun she's ready to settle for the best one of the lot, and be happy it's you. I want to be with you Irvine. Now I'm giving you a deadline. I don't wait Irvine, I'm not that kind of girl."

Irvine nearly gagged on spot, "What? Scarlet, ya gotta be kiddin'! We got such a good thing on our hands, great sex and casual dating, sweetness what more could ya want?"

"A boyfriend, a boy that comes and asks me how my day was, and for once doesn't look at me like he wants eat me."

"Good luck with that," Irvine teased sarcastically.

"No more jokes Irvine, no more weekly routines, I want an answer from you. Have one, and find a way to prove it by the next time you see me or don't expect to see me again. Get it?"

Scarlet didn't give Irvine a chance to respond, she knew men well, and knew **she **didn't need to wait around for anything, for surely the answer was bound to come knocking at her door.

''''''''''''''

Taking easy steps through the blazing cavern, Seifer gave the impression that nothing about his environment was difficult. The truth couldn't have been further from that. The heat irritated him, his time allowance scared him, and the unknown of the varying monsters popping out angered him

Instructor Trepe knew all too well about the Fire Cavern. She could pinpoint how long it would take each of her students to come out failing or passing. Her bet on Seifer was a 20-minute count and obviously, her hopes pinned on him passing. "You know," She began loudly trying to overpower the various sounds of the red and dark caverns, "boys usually choke when I come with them. I guess my charm makes them nervous."

Seifer carried on as he thought about that. He easily imagined what boys who spent their entire class time drooling over Quistis must've expected in a place like this. Here, they could have a chance to impress Quistis alone and possibly have a romantic tête-à-tête, here in the darkness. Of course, he could also imagine how idiotic the boys must've come across to a classy woman like the instructor. Boys, that's all they must look like to Quistis. Lastly though, Seifer wondered how many times Quistis used that line. It sounded oddly rehearsed. In the end, he just laughed.

Quistis smiled at this, apparently pleased with her joke.

"Do you know how much longer it is till we bump into a G.F?" Seifer asked as he wiped his forehead with the back of his hand. He'd already threw off his favorite jacket, about two minutes after he'd entered. Trying to be polite to the fact he had a girlfriend and that the lady accompanying him was his instructor, taking off any more garments seemed inappropriate.

"We're actually almost there." Quistis said, calmly following.

Seifer exhaled loudly, his eyes squinted protecting themselves from the heat. He held out his sword and summoned a simple Blizzard magic around him. His sweat froze in place on his skin and a small shiver ran down his spine, but in comparison to the heat, it proved refreshing.

"That was interesting."

"You want a spritz too?" Seifer asked sarcastically.

Quistis laughed and walked up ahead, "I commend you on that actually. You see, it may be wise to save your battle material for battle, but rule number one about fighting is take care of yourself and your comrades before the scuttle."

"Yeah, but now I'm short a blizzard." Seifer said wiping the melting beads of perspiration from his temples. He scanned the dark tunnel and noticed a glittering purple structure in a shadowed corner. "Maybe that draw point has some good magic." Without another word, Seifer started towards it.

"Seifer, what're you doing?"

Laughing shortly, Seifer looked back at Quistis with a sly look. "What? Is this off your beaten path?"

With a frown, Quistis released a small huff. "A bit yes, everyone else I've taken realizes we're being timed! What if you come across a monster, we don't have all the time in the world Seifer."

"Instructor—" Seifer started in a liquid cool voice, "calm down, we'll have time to have lunch and vacation in Dollet after I'm done." Seifer should've stayed quiet, for the minute he finished his arrogant statement his foot landed on a weak section of rock and his entire body went flying down a hole.

"Seifer!" Quistis called rushing after him. She followed him down the hole and found herself falling directly on top of Seifer who laid uncomfortably in a large hole only a yard and half deep. "This is it?" Quistis asked while coughing on the dust produced from the fall. She lifted her head up and realized exactly how awkwardly she landed. She bloomed red as she met eyes with Seifer who glanced at her oddly. "Well? Why didn't you say it wasn't deep?" She snapped trying to subside her embarrassment.

Trying hard not to laugh Seifer shrugged, "I didn't get the chance, you came running too fast."

Quistis pursed her lips together and squinted her eyes. She reached for the sides of the hole and lifted herself up. While doing so, she carelessly stepped and kicked Seifer a bit. "I was just worried you encountered a monster, I am here to support you after all."

After Quistis reached the top, she brushed herself off ignoring Seifer who helped himself out of the hole. "That's just an excuse, **you**— instructor— were worried about me."

Heaving a sigh, Quistis nodded, "Yes Seifer. I worried." She cracked out her long leather whip and within an instant Seifer felt a sharp blazing pain around his neck. Gagging a bit, Seifer felt the strong grip of Quistis' weapon tight around his neck. Quistis, holding her weapon from the other end gave it a small yank and Seifer willingly let himself fly towards her. "If you tell anyone about my falling on you, I will personally make you pay in a fashion you will hate." She pulled her weapon again, freeing Seifer.

Calmly, and as though nothing happened, Quistis walked along continuing to brush herself off. Seifer massaged his neck as he gazed towards Quistis in confusion. "Is something wrong Seifer?" She asked sweetly.

With eyebrows raised in shock, Seifer gagged again. He stood up straight, brushed himself off and chuckled. Quistis still stood there, sassily, awaiting Seifer to leap over the hole and join her. Her legs were crossed making her appear more slender than normal. Seifer smiled, "Nothing Instructor, I'm coming."

* * *

Rinoa stared bored at the ceiling.

Seifer left early in the morning for his exam. He most likely finished, but he'd yet to come back to Rinoa to celebrate their success as he'd promised. She didn't expect him too either. Now she'd rather lay around and fight the guilt she'd been battling.

Whenever Seifer was around her guilt subsided, and dissolved. It wasn't always exciting around him, nor full of entertainment, but it was peaceful. When Squall was around, however, guilt, enthusiasm and passion overtook her. The eclectic mix that came with each man strangled her within.

Rinoa sighed still staring blankly at the white monotony that hung over the room. Angelo whimpered as he rolled over in sleep, letting his tail flicker and tickle Rinoa's legs. With a small smile, Rinoa sat up and gently stroked her canine's soft fur.

"Rinoa!" Called a familiar voice. The dorm's entrance door flew open and Seifer rushed in with his confident grin and his gunblade hanging over his shoulder. "I passed."

"I'm so happy for you!" Rinoa said jumping to her feet. _Finally! Something to do today; _she thought as she hurried to give Seifer a well-deserved hug. "So what are your plans future SeeD to-be?" She giggled as she pulled away to meet eyes with Seifer.

Seifer kissed Rinoa on the forehead and winked, "We can go do anything you want. Anything."

The interesting thing about wants and desires are once you get something, you often find the wait was half the fun. That's the feeling that swept Rinoa. Although she'd spent the entire day thinking and pondering about Squall, once the opportunity to do something else finally arrived, she couldn't bring herself to leave. "You know, actually I'm kind of tired… how about we celebrate tomorrow. I just feel so lazy today." She bit her lip and bashfully looked away, somewhat ashamed with herself.

"Yeah, that's fine." Seifer didn't fight Rinoa, in fact his idea of celebrating had little to do with her anymore. He gave her a small kiss farewell, walked back upstairs, and returned to Instructor Trepe's classroom.

* * *

When Seifer returned to Quistis's classroom, he found that Quistis already had something to occupy her time with.

The Assistant Headmistress of the school paid a visit bringing along her one and only student, Selphie. The three of them sat around the instructor's desk laughing and conversing of some matter.

Quistis was the first to notice Seifer. She turned to him with her polite gaze and bowed her head, "Yes Seifer, did you forget something?"

Seifer knew he'd be lying if he said he wasn't a bit disappointed he couldn't spend the time lounging there. Instead, he shook his head and continued with his normal attitude, "I was just wondering Instructor, if we still were having our session today." He raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms.

Headmistress Edea gave a surprised look, "Oh Quistis, I'm terribly sorry! I completely forgot about your other obligations. I'll just find another instructor."

"Please Headmistress, it's really not a bother at all. After all, with the SeeD exam drawing close I'm sure Seifer won't be forced to have afternoon sessions anymore." Quistis explained complacently.

Seifer looked over at Selphie who sat at the edge of her seat with an abnormally happy beam. She turned to him and waved enthusiastically, "Hi Seifer! You remember me?"

"Rinoa's roommate." Seifer responded, not amused or interested at all.

"Ah, so you already know Selphie?" Quistis asked, she returned her attention to Headmistress Edea, "I'm sure Seifer will be helpful to me in this case then." Realizing Seifer obviously wanted to be in the loop, she glanced his way and explained, "Headmistress Edea here just asked if I could give Selphie some lessons on fighting. Don't worry about it though, you've earned the day off, Seifer." She smiled and looked to Edea again, "Seifer here just passed his field exam."

"Why, congratulations Mr. Almasy. I look forward to seeing you at the SeeD Inauguration Ball then." Edea said bowing her head.

Seifer bowed respectfully, and hiding his dissatisfied grimace. "Of course, Headmistress." He straightened up, shined one of his sly smiles at the group of women, and let himself out, upset and disappointed.

* * *

I'm suuuuuper sorry for the wait! I wanted to get this up earlier, but life sucks like that. Thank for reading and sticking through with me and my bad habits of not updating fast!


	27. Chapter 26

"_It's only love"  
__Beautiful World_

_Chapter Twenty-Six_

The next day brought about a new, hope for a good day. Irvine sat in the cafeteria while Zell and Amy sat across him giggling and acting like precious lovebirds. The sharpshooter knew well to ignore them, less he shoot them on spot for annoying the devil out of him. For Zell's good fortune, Irvine dissembled his entire shotgun on the table. He carefully cleaned every piece, concentrating on the smooth metal over the gushing couple.

Carefully, Irvine's deft and skilled hands put the gun back together again. He cocked it shutting the pair in front of him with a very familiar sound. Amy and Zell stared up at Irvine cautiously. Kinneas just laughed as he rested the firearm on his lap, stroking it like a pet.

Through the crowd of the busy cafeteria, Rinoa appeared at the end of the table. Loudly, she clasped her hands on the table forcing everyone's attention on her. "Good morning everyone!" Everyone muttered a greeting in response. "Anyone seen Squall this morning?"

Dropping his hotdog, Zell turned to Rinoa and gave her a bizarre look. "What do you want with buzz kill?"

Before Rinoa had a chance to tell Zell anything, Selphie appeared behind getting a far more responsive reaction from the group. Rinoa too, warmly greeted Selphie. She turned to Irvine who's face lit up and eyes appeared glued onto Selphie's round little face. "Irvine, can I see you for a minute?"

There was obvious disdain Irvine felt for having to remove his sight from Selphie. He bowed his head to his lady and followed Rinoa between the morning masses buzzing through the dining hall. Once alone, Rinoa crossed her arms and gave Irvine a very angry expression. "What do you think you're doing?" She snapped.

Irvine raised an eyebrow of confusion. He thought for a moment before his eyes fell onto Selphie a few tables away. "Ya don't expect me to just dismiss her every time she walks by do ya?"

"I expect you not to be such an idiot and realize what's happening! You're falling for her!" Rinoa hissed angrily.

"I have no idea what you're talking about. And anyways who are you to give me a piece of your mind?" Irvine snapped.

"I thought we were friends!"

"That's not what I meant and you know it. You're mad at me for how I looked at Selphie? Well at least I don't have any prior engagements missy."

"What in Hyne's name are you talking about?!"

Rinoa and Irvine started inching forward towards each other with each sizzling retort.

"I'm not having an affair with anyone while stringing my boyfriend along." Irvine continued with his eyebrows furling inward.

"I'm am **NOT **having an affair and you know that!" Screamed Rinoa as she fisted her hands, keeping them safely at her sides.

"Well what do you call that," Irvine cleared his throat as he prepared for a girly mimic, "Good mornin', where's Squally poo?"

"Shut up! You know Squall and I are just friends, Seifer even said it was okay!"

"And that makes a lot of sense. Your boyfriend said it's okay to hang out with a guy he obviously hates. I wouldn't be surprised if he's having an affair of his own."

By this point of the argument, Rinoa and Irvine were pressing their foreheads together. Irvine arched his back downward to keep firm eye contact with Rinoa, while she stood on her tiptoes. The cafeteria around them actually was too busy to make much notice of them. Upon Irvine's last comment, Rinoa tore away, tears brimming her eyes.

"YOU'RE INSUFFERABLE IRVINE KINNEAS! I HATE YOU! YOU MIGHT NOT LISTEN TO ME ANYMORE BUT SELPHIE WILL!" With that, she ran out of sight.

Irvine watched slightly appalled about what had just occurred. His eyes wandered lost in the crowds of students as the argument replayed in his mind. He'd just driven his best friend away. What had he done?

_What's it matter? She was just trying to stop me from hanging with Selphie. She's just friends with Squall huh? Well I'm just friends with Selphie! Let her go, I don't need her drama anyways. _

"Where's Rinoa?" Selphie asked innocently as she walked up to Irvine. The cowboy shook out of his daze and look down spotting the petite brunette adjacent to him.

"She's busy." He huffed. "Come on, let's go." Irvine put an arm around his small little friend and led her away.

'''''''''''''''''''

Rinoa rushed out of the cafeteria as quick as her legs could take her. The sound of her racing heart pounded in her ears and the vibrations made her entire body tremble. She sprinted down the glossy halls ignoring all sounds and voices around her. Finally Rinoa found herself in the quiet outdoors of the courtyard.

The tears that formed in the cafeteria began to spill from the ends of her lids. Sniffling quietly, Rinoa knelt on the ground and buried her head into her knees. All her life, even if no one else listened or made her feel like she belonged, she had Irvine.

Rinoa Caraway felt cursed from a childhood most would consider fortunate. Born to the fabulously wealthy General Fury Caraway and Galbadian singing sensation Julia Heartily, Rinoa received every luxury a human could ask for. However, she felt if someone ever gave her the choice between a life of riches versus a life full of unconditional love from her parents, she found herself choosing the second option each time.

While Rinoa still crawled, her mother attempted to continue her singing career. Had a she not fallen ill to a tragic disease, Julia's singing would still fill the streets of Deling City. The doctors predicted the missus would pass within a few months.

During this time, Rinoa received no attention, even from her once busy mother. Despite the fact that Julia Caraway continued to fulfill her singing career, she remained in Deling City to stay near Rinoa. When the doctor ordered her to complete bed rest, the responsibility of Rinoa's upbringing fell to her father, Fury.

Rinoa, still a young child, found herself on the first train to Galbadia Garden. For months at a time, Fury never bothered fetching his daughter to come back and visit. On the few occasions that Rinoa returned the Caraway Manor, he father spent her entire short trip scolding and punishing her for her bad marks at Garden.

Being a General, Fury had high expectations of his daughter. When Rinoa returned only to appear as a lap dog to her sick mother, Fury bellowed that if Rinoa continued her childish and interruptive behavior her mother would never heal.

Although a terrible father, Fury proved a devoted husband. He'd hired doctors from all over the world to assess his wife. When Rinoa spent every moment she had to disturb his wife's much needed rest, he punished severely.

Rinoa started to grow resentment for her home. Due to this, she attempted to make herself love Galbadia Garden. Children, of course, are cruel at young ages. They teased Rinoa, as she was the newest recruit.

The first person to stop the mocks and save Rinoa from early childhood depression was Irvine. From that moment on, the two were inseparable. Irvine even joined Rinoa to visit her home, so that when General Caraway had his fill of shouting at his small child, she could run to Irvine who'd happily comfort her.

When Julia finally recovered, happy to resume her position of a parent, Rinoa already made up her heart's decision of hating home. Her love for her mother could not surpass the undying hate she had for her father.

Rinoa told her mother she wanted to move to Balamb Garden, not mentioning the biggest reason behind her decision was to escape future encounters with her father. Julia, although sad, gave Rinoa her blessing. She gave Rinoa her most prized possession, her wedding ring, and a small puppy to wish her well.

Even after she left Galbadia, she dragged Irvine along and received routine letters from her mother often. Irvine continued to be her main support in life though. Even after she started dating Seifer, Irvine could console her through all her fights and tribulations.

Never did she feel more alone in her life.

Rinoa continued to sob over her knees, letting her tears glide over her cheeks and onto her thighs. Although Rinoa always had a feeling they would end up fighting over something as trivial as a girl or boy, she never imagined it would hurt her so deeply. Akin to how she started to feel when Selphie first arrived pulling Irvine away, Rinoa felt just as lonesome.

As much as Rinoa wanted to hate and blame Selphie for the situation, even she knew Selphie was too good hearted to intentionally do anything harmful. Still miserable, Rinoa let out a terrible cry as she wept.

"Rinoa?"

With a small gasp, Rinoa jumped to her feet and spun about to Squall who stood casually before her. She rubbed her face as hard as she could try to remove the signs of crying. "Oh hi Squall," She manage to muster between tearful hiccups and sniffles.

"You're crying?" Squall continued rather bluntly.

Still attempting to clean her face of tears and redness, Rinoa shook her head. "It's nothing, I just come and cry for fun sometimes." She let her hands rest from rubbing and rested them on her chest, "It's good for the heart."

Squall raised an eyebrow, obviously not convinced. He crossed his arms and looked away. A few moments passed before he freed his arms and returned his gaze to Rinoa. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"Not to you! I'd probably have better luck talking to wall." Rinoa said trying to stifle her upcoming weeps.

"Probably." Coolly responded Squall. He held out his hand. His eyes looked as though intensely fixed in a conversation but his lips remained sealed. "Have fun talking to a wall then." He spat as he began to turn around.

Rinoa stood in silence for few moments confused about Squall's look and somewhat upset he gave up so easily. As the wind of the cool day blew through her locks, she weakly cried out, "Wait!" As pathetic as the cry, and as easily as Squall could've pretended he didn't hear, the quiet lad turned around with the same emotionless look.

For a few moments, Rinoa felt as though she asked a robot for assistance and began regretting it. At this point, she appeared irrational to send him off again. "I-I just didn't take you very seriously when you asked me if I wanted to talk. I mean— you don't seem like that kind of person."

Squall crossed his arms and looked away. Another couple of moments of silence fell as Squall looked at random objects and shook his head.

"Hello?" Rinoa called hesitantly.

Closing his eyes slowly, Squall put down his arms and turned back his attention to Rinoa. "I thought you wanted to talk? Go ahead, talk."

"Not if you're going to look like that and ignore me blatantly!" Rinoa snapped, a tad harshly. "That's not how you cons—" Halfway through her words, Rinoa glimpsed at Squall and realized she criticized his way of comfort. He obviously attempted to show her kindness and here she found herself lecturing him instead. She shook her head and smiled. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean that either. I'm just a little tense."

Daintily Rinoa returned to sitting position and patted the ground near her. "I'm not trying to force you, but I like when people sit beside me, and seem kind of well— interested."

Squall raised and eyebrow, and reluctantly sat himself beside Rinoa. "I wasn't ignoring you, I was thinking."

"Thinking? You mean that's what you're doing every time you get quiet for awhile?" Rinoa asked with her hands clasping her knees holding her forward towards Squall. Her eyes shined with excitement as though she'd discovered a forsaken tomb treasure.

"Yeah, that's probably what I'm normally doing." He looked up at the clear sky and squinted his eyes at the beaming sunlight. "I prefer thinking before I speak."

"You just seem to think, I mean, the ratio to you thinking and speaking has to be like ten to one." Rinoa commented with a slight giggle in her tone.

"What goes on in my head is no one's business. Everyone else should think like that too. Depending on others is pointless. You never get far like that, independent people are the ones who we all end up looking to, so be that person."

With a guilty pit in her stomach, Rinoa looked down to her folded thighs. "You really think that? Then why'd you bother talking to me about why I was upset?"

"Should I just have left you alone? You seem to like talking." Squall retorted a bit irritated.

It occurred to Rinoa at that moment Squall had put aside his cynic beliefs to be kind to he, although he would never admit it. A minute smile touched her lips as she nodded to herself. "No, don't , you're right." Her smile grew a little wider, "I do like talking."

"Go ahead." Squall said.

Rinoa inhaled deeply, it seemed hard to remember why she felt so upset just a few minutes ago. With the moment gone, she couldn't emulate the emotions. "You know, your whole turn your back to everyone but yourself thing sounds like something I should take on." She lowered her voice to hide her happiness and keep herself sounding upset. "Everyone I get close has let me down. My parents, then Seifer, and now Irv—." Saying her problems aloud reminded her of her pain. "Irvine." Rinoa choked on his name.

"Everything and everyone in the world can go wrong, but Irvine is the closest person to me. Now, he's dumped me for a girl. I guess I should've seen it coming, heh, I mean it is Irvine." The small chuckle hid her small sniffle. She didn't want to fight with Irvine, she wanted to discuss her problems with him. She wanted to hear his sarcastic flirty attempts at her. She wanted to him to hug her and say Seifer and her would grow closer again.

Sadly, she couldn't have her best friend at the moment. Instead, she'd have to settle for a man who questioned her fidelity for her boyfriend.

* * *

"So what should we do today?" Irvine asked stretching his long arms over his head.

"I'm sorry Irvy, I still gotta go to Matron for class." Selphie spun and faced Irvine. She tilted her head amiably and smiled with an understood apology on her lips.

With that, Selphie glided down the hall and out of sight. Irvine's eyes lingered and watched her every moment until she became a blur of colors and finally nothing at all. While watching Selphie, Irvine didn't even get a chance to think, just seep in the sight.

"Hey, you, sniper slut!"

Very well aware of whose sarcastic voice just referred to him, Irvine gave a slight groan and turned around to Seifer who made his way forward casually to him. "Uncalled for, Seifer." He muttered bitterly.

Seifer stopped and appeared as though he were holding back his chuckle. He jerked his head in direction of where Selphie walked off. "Don't tell me you didn't just spend an entire minute drooling over your next dinner. Sniper slut suits you cowboy."

"That's **NOT** what I was doing!" Irvine growled, growing angrier than he normally ever did.

Shaking his head with little to no concern, Seifer took a step forward and straightened his posture. Once in a proud stance, as he normally took for the everyday occasion, Seifer returned to matters he actually did care about. "I don't care who or what you're doing tonight, just tell me where Rinoa is."

"I don't know, try outside, that's usually where she goes." Irvine responded without thinking. After Rinoa and his spat a little earlier, he couldn't fathom where Rinoa actually took refuge, but his automatic instincts blurted outside. Rinoa found quiet, open spaces relaxing, and often went outside during stressful times.

Seifer raised his eyebrows and raised his hand. Before Irvine could ask what he was doing, Seifer flicked his fingers and two people raced from behind Irvine to Seifer's side. Like everyone else in Garden, Irvine found himself well acquainted with the unofficial Disciplinary Committee. His connection with Rinoa often let him escape their incredibly strict actions.

Irvine felt doubtful Seifer knew anything of Rinoa and his miniature battle, but nonetheless he wanted to get away from Seifer and his posse as quickly and stealthily as possible.

* * *

Ten minutes of incessant blabbering had passed. Squall had barely moved since the beginning of the conversation, and the only sound effects he made was his breathing to indicate he lived.

Rinoa felt hesitant to ask Squall if he even heard her anymore. She knew herself she'd just be disappointed if Squall tuned her out. Talking obliviously on the one hand seemed to go off without a hitch. Without any interruptions, Rinoa recollected her problems with school, Irvine, and her conflict with sharing him with a new girl. After this long rant, Rinoa concluded with a simple, "So that's that" and sat in silence.

A few moments passed before another word went said. To Rinoa's surprise, it turned out to be Squall who broke the stillness.

"So why does this Irvine mean so much anyways?" He asked calmly.

Rinoa didn't linger or squeal in excitement about Squall's interest. Just for a little while, she felt too self involved in her own drama. "Irvine's been like my brother you see. My parents— er, my old man never made me feel really at home."

"Your mom?"

A sigh escaped Rinoa's light pink lips, "My mother was sick a lot of my childhood. By the time she was better, that man made me feel like an exile from the manor. Irvine feels like my only family." Rinoa sat up straight and held her neck forward. Realizing Squall was now giving her a very uncomfortable look; she reached out and pulled against a silver chain she wore. "My mom considers this her most treasured item."

Deftly, Rinoa unhooked the chain and released the ring that hung from it. The perfectly smooth and lustrous loop glittered in the daylight as it rested upon Rinoa's white palm. "I guess my mom realized she couldn't do anything to win my heart over, but she gave me this a s hope that I'd find someone who'd make me happy, even if it wasn't her." Rinoa held it out as to indicate to Squall that he could hold and observe it. As the quiet lad understood and held out to receive it, Rinoa noticed gleaming silver around his finger.

"Hey you have a ring too! Can I see it?" She asked excitedly forgetting about her own.

Squall turned his head away and stayed quiet for a few moments. After pondering it over, he carefully slipped it off his finger and hanged it to Rinoa while she gave him her ring. "Be careful with it." Squall said sternly.

Rinoa nodded her head with a small laugh wondering what possible threat she could pose upon the ring now. She held the loop to the light and watch the reflections dance off its unscathed surface. As she looked and observed it more carefully, she noticed a carving that ran through majority of the circle. Bringing it closer to her eyes, Rinoa made out an elongated lion. Upon discovering it, she immediately vocalized, "Wow a lion!"

Not having put as much interest in Rinoa's ring, Squall nodded and replied immediately. "Yeah," He pulled at a thick linked chain that hid under his shirt. Stringing at the end of the chain was a thick mighty pendant of the same lion from the ring.

Rinoa's eyes glittered with questions and enthusiasm, "Why a lion? Does he have a name? Where'd you get this from?"

"I don't want to talk about it." Squall replied bluntly and quickly.

Rinoa sighed and dropped the subject. Her hand closed tightly around Squall's ring as she looked away minutely frustrated.

While Rinoa gazed out and waited for Squall to ask for his ring back, she didn't notice Squall reaching for her hand. As his fingers curled around her palm, Rinoa spun her head so quickly she felt she'd come close to twisting it off. Her eyes opened in shock as she watched Squall lift her hand and slip her ring onto the appropriate finger.

"Squall—" She uttered, lost for words, and breath.

"It's a perfect fit."

"What?"

"The ring, its exactly your size. Seifer's lucky I guess, he won't have to go out and buy you a new ring since you seem to have the perfect one here."

"Oh," Rinoa sighed quietly, slightly disappointed, "Yeah I guess…"

"At this rate, it doesn't look like Seifer won't have to buy her anything."

Both Rinoa and Squall moved their attention to the group standing in front of them. Rinoa jolted her head again hard, this time in complete fear. Squall on the other hand shifted calmly, not exactly taken aback.

Seifer, sided with Fujin and Rajin, glared at them. No more words passed between either one's lips. With an evil glare, Seifer stared at Rinoa's hand, tucked gracefully in Squall's. He lifted his own hand and snapped turning him and his friends away from the scene and exiting without another word passing.

"Seifer…!" Rinoa finally found the words sputtering out of her mouth. She ripped her hand away from Squall's grip and rushed after him.

* * *

Quick and stealthy escapes never went well with Seifer. He never needed to make them; therefore, he never perfected the technique. When Rinoa came calling him name repeatedly behind him and his comrades, he simply allowed her to make a scene until he reached the gates of Balamb where he paused and turned to Rinoa and very simply told her to leave him alone.

He didn't know how Rinoa took his dismissal, and quite frankly didn't care. Seifer, equipped with his two closest friends, went out for his favorite stress time activity.

Rinoa went to quiet places and complained to her friend, Irvine slept with women (which he did even if he wasn't stressed), Seifer though, liked to drink until the night turned into day.

Seifer felt safest when Fujin and Rajin accompanied him, however, unavailability of companionship didn't stop him when he felt he needed to have a drink. Lately though, he noticed he never seem to return to Garden unscathed when he was wasted. Not that pain particularly bothered him, but his drunken injuries were starting to rack up an embarrassing reputation that Seifer didn't appreciate.

"One round of Mimmets here ya know." Rajin called out to the barkeep as the three took a seat on the narrow bar stools.

"CONTINUOUSLY." Fujin added stoically.

Seifer stayed quiet as Fujin carefully placed the large glass in front of him. The three saw in silence, Fujin and Rajin respectfully realizing Seifer didn't want to take about the both hurtful and embarrassing scene.

Still expressing no words, Seifer gripped his glass and forced down a large gulp. The liquid poured down his throat and burned. Seifer squeezed his eyes closed and breathed out while the last drops of his intake slid passed his tongue. Mimmet was one of the sweeter drinks of the pub, but contained a high concentration of alcohol, consuming it slowly was recommended.

After a few breaths, Seifer chugged down another large gulp. The searing within his throat blazed with a certain satisfaction to Seifer. He smiled as the pain initiated and cool along the walls of his gullet.

…the one thing Squall couldn't have his hands on…

It was though he'd jinxed himself. The moment he thought, he had something over Squall, mystery boy appeared with another amazing trick. The image of Squall's hand gingerly holding Rinoa's flashed in his mind repeatedly.

At some point between glasses and the repeated image, Seifer stopped caring about the fact it was Rinoa's hand and simply the fact it was Squall's.

_Squall… Squall… Squall_

Seifer closed his eyes as he poured down the remains of his second glass. "Keep them coming."

* * *

When Selphie returned to her dorm after a full class day, including a small session with Instructor Trepe, she felt mentally exhausted. She threw open her door and collapsed in crashing noisily on the ground.

Rinoa, who was sitting in the main room with Angelo, jumped in response to the sudden crash. She blinked at Selphie, who hadn't moved since she landed on the hard floor. "Selphie are you okay??"

With a small jolt, Selphie leapt to her feet and tilted her head. "Tee-hee, I'm fine!!" She brushed herself off while Rinoa returned to her comfortable position on a chair, stroking Angelo with one hand, and sliding a ring on and off her finger with the other. "That's pretty!" Selphie squealed as her eyes danced on the glinting silver between Rinoa's fingers.

Slowly, Rinoa pulled the ring off a final time and watched her distorted reflection within it. A smile came to her lips, "Do you ever think about getting married Selphie? Or at least what your wedding would be like?"

Selphie felt hesitant to respond, not surely sure how to answer. The concept of marriage to Selphie certainly deemed itself a foreign one. As for weddings, she'd never seen how one looked or went.

"You do know what I'm talking about, right?" Rinoa clarified, bothered by Selphie's silence.

A bit uncomfortable to talk about something she knew nothing about, Selphie shifted into the closest seat and sunk into it. "Gee— I dunno. I guess I really don't know enough about that kind of stuff to think about it."

Rinoa dazed off as though looking at her future wedding itself, "It's beautiful… all eyes on you in a white gown, someone you love and loves you standing at the end of an alter. You promise each other you'll love each other forever in front of everyone!" She sighed embraced with romantic thoughts.

"You're getting married Rinoa?" Selphie asked, confused.

"To get married, you probably need a fiancé. To get a fiancé, you probably need a boyfriend, which I'm not so sure I have anymore." Sighing again, this time more sadly and distressing, Rinoa came to her feet and snapped for Angelo to follow her to her room where she locked herself away for the day.

Rinoa mentioned very few details about a wedding, and absolutely nothing about marriage. However much she did describe piqued a certain curiosity in Selphie. Her mind designed the whole event in her head. Pleased with what she made up, Selphie went to her room and relaxed herself on her bed, dreaming of her wedding.

* * *

_The room appeared small, but Selphie, and even smaller person, felt comfortable. Before her stood, a full-length mirror displaying herself in a simple white dress. To most it would seem like a long sundress, but to Selphie, it was the most beautiful article of clothing she'd ever worn. _

_Pleased with how she appeared, Selphie twisted and shifted watching the folds in the dress sway. Other than her white dress, she did not wear any adornment, with the exception of a very thing silver necklace with an even smaller pendant. _

_Selphie's thin little fingers wrapped tightly around the stolen necklace, the necklace she took from Devin's manor as memoir of her amazing days there. She didn't want to steal from Devin, but since the entire room was given to her, it surely didn't bother him._

_"Well even if it did bother him," Selphie thought aloud, "it shouldn't bother him now!" She giggled as she continued to move her reflection about. _

_"Who're you talking to?" _

_Abruptly surprised, Selphie spun around and watched Irvine allow himself into the room. _

_"Oh Irvy, you came!" She said with such joy, tears brimmed her eyes._

_"I'm not staying Sefie, I'm sorry. I can't— no, more like I won't." Irvine replied, his voice sullen, and defeated._

_"Irvy, please…" Whimpered Selphie, as she took a step towards Irvine. _

_"No, you shouldn't do this. Come with me, we'll get out of here!" A rush of emotion and excitement returned him to his normal and charismatic tone._

_"You know I can't Irvy, and I won't. Mr. Devin has done everything for me" _

_"Then he should want you to be happy, right?"_

_Selphie turned around and faced her back to the cowboy. "T-then, you should go Irvy." Her teary eyes peered into the mirror before her and watched Irvine's face fall, again defeated and sad. _

_"After all I've done for you? Fine, goodbye Sefie! " _

_Irvine turned away and swung the room's door open. Selphie jolted back to watch him go as she called out, "No wait Irvy! Please don't be mad! I didn't mean it!" Her voice didn't make it to him, and as Irvine walked away the scene disappeared and she stood in Devin's ballroom. _

_The ballroom of course gleamed as beautifully as Selphie recalled. There were a few chairs set up making an aisle for her. Standing at the end of the aisle was a wonderfully dressed Mr. Devin. Ignoring her tears, Selphie breathed in and rushed down the aisle to Mr. Devin who took her hand upon reaching him._

_"We promise, to love each other, forever." They said in unison._

_The chairs never filled. The ballroom appeared as empty and deserted as it was when Selphie stayed at the mansion herself. Once Selphie finished uttering her promise, even the empty ballroom dispersed and she found herself back in the stone broken cottage where she resided back in Trabia. _

_She still wore the simple white dress, and Devin of course appeared still handsomely fashioned. The two of them still held hands as they did in the scene before. _

_"I hope you've been happy thus far, haven't you been my dear?" Devin asked sweetly. _

_"Of course, and I couldn't have had any of it if you hadn't saved my life, and taken me in. You gave me a home, a job, and so many things after that. I'll never be able to thank you enough! Now, we'll be together forever so I can try too!" Selphie smiled brightly, her voice full of enthusiasm. _

_"Very good my dear," Mr. Devin's grip tightened around Selphie's hand. He watched her ecstatic face slowly morph to a more uncomfortable and then pained looked. Her lips parted as she uttered a suppressed groan of pain. _

_Grip still tight as ever, Devin brought Selphie closer to him and whispered in her ear, "Good, then you can start paying me back for running away to Balamb!" He squeezed her until…_

Selphie's eyes shot open as she threw herself out of her bed. Lying on the cold floor, Selphie thought hard about breathing. Something felt caught in her chest as she couldn't suck in any air and couldn't release anything either. Her head felt dizzy as tears blurred her vision, _just breath in Selphie! _Suffocating from nothing, Selphie felt her tears stream down her cheek.

"Hey Selphie!" Irvine entered the room, but stopped dead in his tracks as he saw a collapsed Selphie sobbing mutely on the floor.

While Irvine watched, paralyzed in shock, Selphie felt a wind of freshness sweeping over her, releasing her hold over her lungs. She breathed in and whispered, "Irvy…" Tears continued to fall, but now for a different purpose. Selphie lunged her tiny bodice into Irvine's arms and continued to breath in deeply taking in his smell and the wonderful moment.

Mr. Devin saved her life once, and now Irvine had too.

"Sefie? What's wrong? W-why ya crying?" Irvine asked panicked.

Selphie slowly loosened her embrace and looked Irvine in the eye. "Sorry Irvy, I just had a bad dream— I'm kind of scared of going back to bed now."

As easily as lifting a pillow, Irvine swooped his petite friend into his arms and returned her back to her bed, "Don't ya worry. I'll stay with you until ya fall asleep. I'll chase any bad dreams you got with my best friend, here." Irvine patted his rifle that rested safely in his long holster.

"I'd really like that Irvy." Selphie said as she snuggled onto the mattress.

Selphie knew she's always be eternally thankful for what Devin did for her. He saved her life, and gave it meaning passed sitting on the curb of a hotel. However, her dream was a sign. A sign stating that whatever life she lived in Trabia, it was done. In Balamb, she was receiving an education, friends, and other amazing opportunities. Trabia was her past, and she was positive Balamb would be her future. She'd never return to her old occupation, or lifestyle. Now that she had a new grasp of potential, there was no reason to go backwards. After becoming a lady at the fountain, she never went back to begging did she?

Never would Selphie go back to being a lady at the fountain, go back to Trabia, and she knew now, she'd never go back to Mr. Devin.

* * *

Quistis didn't enjoy working late, however lately she'd taken on so much she found herself locked into her classroom every minute of everyday. Between organizing the candidates for the SeeD examination, tutoring Selphie, mentoring Seifer, and taking students to the Fire Cavern, Quistis simply felt exhausted.

Speaking of all her normal tasks, Quistis had just come to notice Seifer hadn't come to see her today. She didn't particularly mind since she still made productivity of the day, she found it odd, and somewhat unsettling.

Even if she canceled a meeting with Seifer, it seldom occurred that he didn't arrive to at least hear it from her lips. Then again, it was a weekend drawing ever nearer to the SeeD exam. All students had their means of coping with the anticipation. Seifer recently mentioned Rinoa and him were to celebrate their success thus far, perhaps he got lost in rejoice.

Stifling an incoming yawn, Quistis pushed aside work she deemed appropriate to finish the next day and began picking up all the messes of paper trailed about her desk. Some were small quizzes she gave Selphie, others were grade reports for her students who seemed they wouldn't make it to the SeeD exams.

"Why are you still here Instructor?"

Quistis calmly stood straight and saw Seifer leaning against the doorway. She rubbed her eyes hoping it was her weariness causing an illusion. After rubbing her eyes to soreness, she squinted to see Seifer still there, smiling cunningly at her.

"Seifer, what are you doing here? If you are here for your session, I'm afraid I only want to see you earlier in the day. I'm far too tired now." Quistis explained bluntly still confused and sleepy.

Seifer laughed, "But Instructor, I came to see you. It's not nice to push me away, after all you wouldn't push pretty boy away would you?"

"I can honestly say I have no idea what you're talking about Seifer. I'm in no mood to see any student, whether it be Squall or whether it be **YOU**." Quistis pushed back her hair and began pushing Seifer towards the exit.

"Oh instructor, you look so pretty like that—" Seifer chuckled wily.

"I can tell you're very drunk Seifer, making your presence here all the more unsettling."

Seifer planted his feet firmly, not allowing Quistis to push him any further. Instead, he deftly shoved Quistis backwards until she felt trapped between him and her desk. "I meant it," Seifer said more calmly as he twiddled with Quistis' free hair that made its way out of her clip throughout the long day. "There's no one I wanted to talk to more, instructor."

Quistis flushed a deep red, "S-Seifer, I think you should go. Didn't you have plans with Rinoa or something??"

"Screw that bitch." With that, Seifer gripped Quistis' chin and yanked her face towards his. "I much prefer celebrating with you."

Before Quistis could protest, or even think about protesting or questioning what he meant by that, Seifer leaned in and pushed his lips against hers.

The kiss was brief and shallow. Seifer let go of his instructor's face and she pulled away rapidly. Before Seifer could comment or make another action, Quistis stared him darkly in the eyes and hissed, "Get out Seifer, **now**."


	28. Chapter 27

"_Donna koto demo yatte mit"  
__("No matter what it is, give everything a try")_

_Beautiful World  
__Chapter Twenty-Seven_

Seifer awoke the next morning with a splitting headache, something quite accustomed by him. He massaged his temples and eased his eyes to the bright light of day. _Class starts soon, then session with Instructor Tre—_

Something felt off about his thought of Instructor Trepe. He felt slightly anxious, and odd since he felt like he had just seen her. He knew he skipped his session yesterday, something the instructor dearly did not approve of. Yet somehow, he felt he did see her the day before.

Perhaps he'd dreamt it? Walking into her classroom, talking to her, hearing her strict tone— kissing her…

He had dreamt it, he must've. It couldn't be possible he actually did something so wrong on so many levels. Of course, he dreamt it; Seifer would never do something like **that** with Instructor Trepe. _It was just a dream…_

"Seifer! Seifer let me in!"

Seifer could hear Rinoa's faded and distant call shouting from the door of his dorm. The already growing anxiety shot up as Seifer eyed the dorm entrance through his open room door. He groaned and squinted his eyes while trying to think of the night before, what had he done?

"Seifer please! I need to talk to you!"

No longer sure of his own actions, Seifer stood up, ready to face the music. Whatever he believed Rinoa had done, it probably didn't surpass what he'd committed. Reluctantly, he stood up and opened up the dorm's front door allowing in Rinoa who heaved and sighed as she'd obviously rushed here.

"Seifer listen, I'm so sorry! It just looked bad, nothing was happening. We were just talking! I've been looking for you since yesterday, and I- I—"

Seifer closed his eyes and swept his hand nonchalantly, "Let's just forget about it." He said quietly.

Rinoa's eyes beamed happiness as she leapt over Seifer in a tight embrace, "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" She planted a kiss on his cheek and stood suspended in the air from her grip holding Seifer's tall shoulders tightly. "Now come on let's get ready and head to class? Feels like you haven't walked me to a class in forever!"

_Class…_ the real moment of truth would reveal, if something did happen in with Instructor the previous night, she wouldn't hesitate to tell him. He nodded and put on his casual smile hiding his fear and guilt eating at him.

'''''''''''''''''''''

Quistis tried hard to concentrate on Headmistress Edea. She tried even harder to be attentive to the plan for Selphie Edea discussed. Her mind simply failed to even pay the minutest amount of interest in Selphie or the Headmistress.

"Instructor Trepe?" Selphie asked cutely as she sat at the edge her seat, her little legs dangling childishly.

Blinking several times, Quistis slowly moved her head to the small brunette, "I'm sorry, did you say something?"

Selphie and Edea exchanged confused glances at one another. It was the second time Edea found herself explaining her very well made out schedule to Quistis and for a second time, she didn't understand or hear her.

Quistis noticed the awkward silence and began flushing red, she bowed embarrassedly. "Pardon me, Headmistress, I was up late last night. I can't quite seem focus well enough it appears."

Still slightly appearing confused, Edea bowed her head politely, "It's fine Quistis, come back when you're feeling better. Selphie and I usually have long days, we're bound to be here for awhile. I hope you feel up to your classes today."

"Y-yes, of course." With that, Quistis made a hasty exit passed the office foyer into the elevator. She leaned against the sleek metal wall of the small vesicle and hung her head in shame. She couldn't bring herself to stop thinking about the instance with Seifer the night before.

Worse than that, she couldn't decide what to do now…

Either she confronted him about it, and risk the unpredictability of his response being positive or negative. Whichever way he took it, Quistis didn't know if she wanted to hear any response. Mixed emotions swarmed through body as she thought of the amazing passion she felt from that brief kiss. At the same time, she knew Seifer had a girlfriend; perhaps mentioning it would put the two of them in a very complicated situation.

Or maybe a very good situation…

Quistis shook her head madly; she didn't look at Seifer that way! He was impulsive rude and arrogant. She could tolerate him now, yes, but that was a long shot of actually wanting to be in a relationship with him.

The excitement of having a kiss after so long made her head spin. That was it, a rush, no emotion involved.

That still left Quistis at a crossroads if she should ask Seifer about it or pretend it didn't happen. She exited the small elevator to the overcrowded second floor full of students busily heading to class.

"_That bitch… I much prefer celebrating with you." _Before Quistis pondered anymore on the subject, her answer came fleeting towards her.

Rinoa arms linked tightly with Seifer's came trotting the hall with a wide smile as she leaned her little raven haired head on his shoulder, or as close as she could get to it. Seifer smiled his normal thin smirk, haughty and proud. They walked in union, both appearing to be equally happy with one another.

The moment Quistis laid eyes on their happy-go-lucky scene, she knew immediately the events of the night before would better serve as a secret. She'd address Seifer as though nothing occurred. As she smiled good morning to everybody in her class, she sat behind her desk and sighed, a slight feeling of disappointment lingering in her chest.

''''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine groaned loudly, breaking the silence that held heavy in his room since he entered it the night before. Irritable from the fact he'd been sleeping alone since the night with Wimbly Donner, Irvine kicked off his sheets all to just roll over.

Outside of his door, Irvine could hear Zell scrambling about for his books and shoes. A few bumps and stumbles, followed by pained muttered curses, and finally came the familiar beating on Irvine's door. "Hey Kinneas! Have you seen my history book?"

"Just take mine, it's on the table." Irvine mumbled loudly not moving off his side.

"I had notes in mine!" Zell panicked still beating the door.

_What a prick_, Irvine forced himself up and stared at the door darkly. If Zell broke it again, they'd both be in trouble. He recalled the embarrassing event when they had to explain to Xu why his first door broke.

"_So what happened here?" Xu asked, her arms crossed as she eyed the dorm door with a large perfect hole punched through._

"_I was knocking, to get in— er for awhile." Zell uttered with shame, rubbing the back of his neck vigorously. _

"_And why didn't you answer it sooner Irvine?" Xu snapped at the seemingly innocent roommate._

"_It was funny…" Irvine admitted guiltily. _

He swept to his door and pulled it open. Zell, taken aback to see Irvine actually appear gave him an awkward smile as a good morning. "I dunnno know where your book is Zell, sorry."

Zell seemed to have dropped the subject as he swished his head side to side as though looking for something in Irvine's room. Irvine eyed him curiously, wondering if Zell actually was accusing him of stealing his book. "You alone in here?" He asked finally.

_This sucks…_ "Yeah so?" Irvine replied nonchalantly, "I was tired last night." He shrugged it off, then suddenly overcome with curiosity of why Zell was so nosy! "What's it to you?"

"Nothing man, just weird since you came back to the room late, but not in the middle of the night or anything." Zell gave him a pat on the shoulder with his massive strong hand, "But even legends take nights off eh?" He chuckled and returned to looking for his book.

Irvine squinted his eyes with annoyance. The only reason he was alone was due to the fact he canceled his date to stay with Selphie. For some reason she appeared so frightened and frazzled, Irvine felt almost guilty to leave her. It took her hours to fall asleep and Irvine found himself asleep too. He woke up in the middle of the night and went back to his room once he was sure Selphie was deep in slumber.

"You coming to class?" Zell asked while shoveling clothes and papers out of his way.

"Might as well, I'm up aren't I?" Irvine yawned.

''''''''''''''''''''''''

Selphie got off early from class with Matron due to the fact she was supposed to start with Quistis today, but Instructor Trepe seemed to side tracked to take on a new activity today. Matron finished her lesson and dismissed Selphie ahead of time giving the afternoon much more free time.

What to do with the time though? Most days she'd find Irvine and practice fighting with him, and with her scheduled training with Instructor Trepe coming up she wanted to continue that habit eagerly, however she had an odd feeling whenever she thought about the handsome cowboy.

Lately, Irvine acted peculiarly around her. Ever since the day at the Student Festival Committee meeting, he acted cold distant, with random spontaneous bursts of sweet and caring moments. The behavior reminded her vaguely of Mr. Devin and fearing Irvine might actually be upset with her, Selphie decided not to seek Irvine out herself.

Every time she thought about him though, a warm fluttering of excitement filled her chest. Memories of the night before when Irvine came to her side and laid beside until she fell asleep swirled through her mind bringing an ever-growing smile to her small face. Unfortunately, Selphie woke up somewhere in the middle of the night to find Irvine left, as he said he'd only stay till she fell asleep. His absence made it hard to return to slumber and Selphie spent the rest of the night up in worry, fear, and loneliness. Even when she lived in Trabia, being alone at night was something she never enjoyed. Despite the uncomfortable situations with her clients and Mr. Devin, at least it kept her with someone, even if for a short while.

Still lost in her thoughts, Selphie didn't notice Nida crossing path and eventually halting her altogether. "Hello Selphie!" He greeted her brightly shaking Selphie out of her daze.

Taken aback, Selphie widened her eyes and stepped backwards putting her thoughts back in order. "Oh, h-hi Nida. What's up?" She finally said after a moment.

"I was just heading to the Quad, Wimbly begged me to put some more elbow grease this week, but since the SeeD exam could happen any day, I just go whenever I'm available, so it won't upset her when I do go off for my exam." Nida explained as he crossed his arms comfortably.

Selphie raised an eyebrow a bit confused and slightly disgusted, "Elbow grease? What the heck is that and why would you put it in the banquet? Grease is nasty!"

Nida blinked several times before he eventually smiled and laughed full heartedly. "Selphie it's a figure of speech! It just means hard work. You are such a funny girl!" He held his sides as his head bowed a bit through his laughter.

Turning a blooming red from embarrassment, Selphie turned her head away and bit the inside of her cheek counting the seconds of Nida's laughter.

"You know Selphie," Nida said finally ending his fit of laughs as he wiped his eyes from their forming tears, "If you're free, I'd very much appreciate the help."

Selphie lit up like a light bulb and nodded vigorously, "Tee-hee! Sure!"

'''''''''''''''''''''''

After class ended, Seifer waited patiently for every student to disappear behind the mechanical classroom doors before even sitting up from his seat placed in the back of the room. He eyed his instructor sitting at the front of the room not at all fazed by him delaying to get up. Her calmness drew him crazy!

With apprehension built up within his gut, Seifer stood up slowly, ready to face the music. Whatever happened with Instructor Trepe last night would finally reveal. She would confirm if he'd done something completely stupid and impulsive or put the fear to rest.

"Ah, there you are Seifer. Where were you yesterday? I was here quite late." Quistis said cheerfully as she raised her attention from her work on her desk.

Seifer stopped dead in his tracks as he let Instructor Trepe's greeting flow over him soothing his nervousness and anxiety. As the new swept over him, his witty smile touched his lips and he took a seat directly in front of his instructor.

"I got side tracked Instructor, I'm terribly sorry." He said snidely.

Instructor Trepe pursed her lips irritably and returned her gaze to her paperwork, "Is that so? Celebrating with Rinoa no doubt?"

"Something like that—" Seifer said choking on his words. The picture of Squall holding Rinoa's hand pulled at his chest.

His pain must've been written on his face since Quistis responded instantly to it, "Is something wrong, Seifer? You seem distressed. If something's on your mind you should say it."

Seifer turned his head away as he hated complaining about Squall aloud. It sounded petty, even to him. "It's all fixed now, why dig up a dead body?"

"Because it appears to be haunting you." Instructor Trepe replied smoothly.

What perfect wording she'd used— Seifer closed his eyes and groaned, "Rinoa and I just got over a big fight. It's been really estranged between us lately."

"But you seemed so happy with her today."

"Today, sure. That's only because we both hit a limit. Maybe not a big one but— urgh…" Seifer stood up and beat his fists into the nearest student study panel. "That damn Squall! I always saw them together and yesterday, I thought they were holding hands, in public! That's my girl and he's always all over her!" He faced Quistis, anger furling deep in his eyes, "I celebrated with Fujin and Rajin. Went drinking… and then—" Seifer quickly cut himself off.

"And then what?" Quistis asked, pulled in full heartedly to his story.

Seifer sat back down and sighed calming his temper down. He stayed quiet for a moment as he decided what to say next. "Rinoa came this morning and apologized for everything. I thought I did something really **stupid** last night and since I was guilty I thought let's just let bygones be bygones."

"But you're frustrated again."

"I realize I didn't do anything to be guilty for."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Trust me," Seifer said with a chuckle. He looked at Quistis with a burnished gleam in his eye, "if I did, it'd show itself… quickly."

Instructor Trepe stayed silent and looked at her lap. After sitting in thought for a few moments she rolled her head back to look at Seifer and gave him a small smile. "Letting it all go with Rinoa was wise of you Seifer. I know now that the root of your frustration does in fact fester from Squall, I don't understand why though."

Seifer shifted uncomfortably. The idea of Squall having that much influence over him bothered him thoroughly.

"I do know however, your progress doesn't come from him. Your relationship with Squall has only worsened but you've grown. You allow your girlfriend to befriend him, you don't get in get in sporadic fights with him, and you behave so much better with me." Quistis' grin grew, a film of forming tear shining in her eye. "You should continue this streak, Seifer. Just let it go."

Quistis turned away and stifled her tears, too proud to let any fall. She quickly released her hair from her to clip to give her something focus on until her desire of crying subsided. As her long locks fell on her shoulder, she combed through with her fingers waiting for Seifer to take her mind of the subject daunting her psyche. When he didn't, she quietly told him he was dismissed.

Just when Quistis believed Seifer would leave without a word he abruptly started. "Whoa,"

Quistis darted her eyes to Seifer confused with what could possibly startle him. "Yes?"

"It's nothing," Seifer said shaking his head with a laugh. He turned his face to the wall, "You just look very pretty with your hair out. You should do it more often."

Instead of thanking Seifer for his compliment, Quistis sat frozen as though she'd hit a realization or epiphany. Even her fingers in mid stroke tangled in her hair stationed in place. _"Oh instructor, you look so pretty like that—" Seifer chuckled wily. _Perhaps Seifer should know of what he'd done the night before. She instantly stood up and said, "Seifer I—"

"Instructor, listen." Seifer said suddenly trying to cover his slight embarrassment of something too brazen to say to your instructor in too sober of tone. "I do, I just want to thank you. I know you were ordered to sit me down and discuss my problems," He chuckled sarcastically, "but you do a lot more than that. So er— thank you." With that, Seifer came over swiftly and hugged Quistis gently.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''

The Quad overflowed wall to wall of balloon arches, ornately decorated tables and platforms. All the decorations stood neatly in order as the committee had spent hours of hard labor on any given day to build and repair them. Wimbly organized them in a fashion so it'd be easier to move straight into the banquet hall whenever the SeeD Inauguration ball would surprise them. The semi-annual Inauguration ball could only take place after the conclusion of the SeeD exams, held twice a year. Since the exam could only be administered when Balamb received a distress call large enough for all SeeD applicants to attend, everyone was on standby.

Random committee members came and went throughout the past week to hurry and finish all the preparations, with the exception of Irvine who came only when dragged by Selphie.

Nida and Selphie sat at the only clutter free corner of the Quad. The remaining preparations that could be taken care of consisted of table arranging. Wimbly distrusted any member to take care of place settings and making center pieces but she did let Nida and Selphie press iron all the elegant table dressings.

As the two members sat in the cool day's breeze ironing the white sheets adorned with thick wreaths of cloth flowers they made fun of Wimbly's perfectionism to pass the time.

"Careful Selphie, she might notice if you singe a stitch on the hem!" Nida cried out overdramatically.

Selphie, holding a long rectangular cloth, weighed down by its stitched on decorations sighed loudly, "You're soo right! Maybe I just throw it away. I mean it's no good to her destroyed like this!" The two laughed as they collectively folded the mats keeping their creasing.

"Looks like we're about done." Nida said after the last sheet had carefully been stored. He gazed over the cornucopia of décor stuffing the Quad and smiled, "Everything else Wimbly will handle. I think it's safe to say we can just sit back until the ball."

A glittering look took over Selphie as she lost herself in the view of preparations, "I've never been to a ball! It's going to be so pretty! I just can't wait!"

"You deserve it Selphie, you've worked really hard on everything." Nida grinned her way.

"Tee-hee, thanks."

Nida stroked his chin as Selphie continued to daydream over the ball-to-be. "You know I've been to the Inauguration Ball a few times, since I've joined the committee, of course." He glanced up to see Selphie was giving him very little attention and was far too distracted with the glimmering balloon arches and artificial flower arrangements. "But the year is going to be different!" He continued raising his volume noticeably.

Finally affected by what Nida had to say, Selphie turned to him and tilted her petite head. "Whatdya mean?"

Nida became silent for a moment. He nervously cleared his throat and met eyes with Selphie again. "Well I just passed my field exam the other day, so all I have left is my SeeD exam. If I pass you know, I will be invited to the Ball. Not for the Committee, but you know— I apologize, I meant, I just wanted to know if you'd go with me, as my date?" Nida looked incredibly apprehensive, "I know it is not a sure thing yet, but I have high hopes!"

"I'd love to go!" Selphie squeaked. Her mind was no longer standing at the edge of Quad, alone in her imaginary banquet. It'd returned to Devin's golden ballroom that glittered and shined, however empty and abandoned it seemed. Her heart lifted as she remembered dancing and gliding across the marble grounds. Soon she could return to that scene, and she couldn't wait.

"Really? Wow, that's fantastic!" Nida said with his happy composure returning to his face.

Nodding in agreement Selphie turned back to the efforts of the Student Festival Committee and smiled.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Rinoa walked passed the mossy green pathways of the Training Center, her blaster edge tightly wound around her arm. Seifer no doubt would spend his allotted timed with Instructor Trepe as he always did, so she decided to find something to do to pass the time. Lately, since her and Irvine had their fight, finding recreational activities that didn't involve studying weren't as easy to think of.

The large metal doors closing off the training grounds from the rest of the school squeaked loudly as Rinoa pushed them inhaling the musty scent of wet grass, and rusted metal. Cautiously, Rinoa entered listening carefully as the heavy doors shut behind her. She hadn't been in the Training Center alone since—

As much as Rinoa kept telling herself she was here to pass the time until Seifer returned, she couldn't fight the hope that'd she see Squall someplace. After all, their relationship rather took off in this place. Rinoa inhaled deeply and slowly moved forward.

A habit, as well as a recommendation from teachers, Rinoa never trained alone. The training grounds and sometimes the open plains were monster roamed freely frightened her. Irvine or Seifer always came along to watch her back and help her if she became overwhelmed. Thinking back more and more how she so seldom came here alone built up more anxiety in her gut with each step.

"You shouldn't be here alone."

Rinoa leapt up in fear and spun around holding her blaster edge forward ready to fire. Without gazing and focusing once, she shot the blade and stood still to see her surroundings.

With a small step to the side, Squall dodged Rinoa's poorly aimed projectile and continued to eye her curiously. When the blade returned to its owner, Rinoa gazed at Squall with happiness in her eyes. "Squall!"

Although she sounded surprised, Rinoa knew honestly she'd been more surprised if she didn't find Squall at some point in the Training Center.

"So? What're you doing here alone?"

Rinoa smiled and walked slowly towards Squall, "Oh I was bored," She giggled, "I'm just waiting for Seifer to be free. What're you doing here?" She twirled gracefully and shined her kind grin.

"Training." Squall replied dully.

"Can I join you?" She asked quickly before Squall could dismiss her. He shrugged, and Rinoa took that as a positive response to her question. "So Seifer and I made up!" She added without anyone's asking.

Squall nodded, or appeared to nod.

"You know, since he walked in on us holding hands and all. I-I just wanted to let you know he's not mad about that or anything." Rinoa continued hoping Squall would take some initiative. Still, of course, nothing spilled from Squall's lips. A bit irritated Rinoa skipped before Squall, halting him in his place.

"What?" He retorted almost snapping.

"I'm talking to you! After all, you were the one who got me in trouble!"

Squall swept passed Rinoa and rolled his eyes, "I didn't do anything," He stopped a few steps later and turned around to face a fuming Rinoa, "I really don't care what happened between you two, it's not my business."

Rinoa's anger subsided and a defeat came over her face, he cared that little about her relationship status? After all the time they spent, Squall hadn't grown any feeling towards her? The way he grabbed her hand the day before, surely he cared somewhat!

"All I care about is getting my ring back."

_In these matters the only certainty is that nothing is certain._

_-__Pliny the Elder_


	29. Chapter 28

"_Son wo shitatte sukoshi keikenchi agaru"  
__("Even if you get hurt, it's a valuable experience)_

_Beautiful World  
__Chapter Twenty-Eight_

"What?" Rinoa asked confused.

"My ring, you took it yesterday when you went and chased off your boyfriend." Squall spat as dully as he could manage, obviously not willing to waste emotion on Rinoa.

So caught up in her own problems and thoughts, Rinoa completely neglected to remember to give back Squall's ring when he allowed her to see it, nor did she bring it back later. She ran after Seifer and when she came back to her dorm she paid it no mind and left it without thinking twice about how protective Squall seemed to be of it.

"Oh right," Rinoa finally responded. "I'm sorry— I," She chuckled embarrassedly, the entire point of her conversation was simply to find a way to talk to Squall about something, anything, and she had the best conversation opener of all, and she wasted time discussing a disagreement with Seifer. "It's in my dorm, come on, let's go get it."

Squall nodded, not noticeably angry about the ring, and once Rinoa said it was safe, his snappiness about the Seifer argument seem to dissolve too. The two walked side-by-side, a little faster than normal pace as they exited the training center into the clean shiny halls of Garden.

Rinoa bit her lip filling evermore with embarrassment as she played back her silly mention of Seifer repeatedly in her head. What in Hyne's name did she expect to accomplish with that notion? "I'm really sorry about all that, I mean just now—"

"Forget about it, I just want my ring." Squall replied calmly.

"Yeah okay— um, question, what's so important about it?" Rinoa asked bluntly as she started turning away to lead the two back to her dorm.

Squall crossed his arms and turned his head away, standing still in silence. A few moments of silence fell between them until finally Squall spoke up again and said quietly, "Someone special gave it to me, and I really like it."

"Someone special huh?" Rinoa repeated in a mocking voice with a small giggle, "Your girlfriend or something?"

"Sis." Squall spat shutting Rinoa's short-lived laughs. He quickened his pace and pushed passed slow moving Rinoa.

After hearing Squall's response, an involuntary smile touched her lips.

'''''''''''''''''

Selphie spent the great half of an hour clearing away the small desk, table and chairs in the dorm common as she found herself an empty clearing. Once everything was finally pushed to max of its compactness, Selphie mimicked her stance she had when dancing with Mr. Devin and continued doing so moving about the empty half of the dorm with her imaginary dance partner. Her pretend, music-less dance found it interrupted when Rinoa walked in with someone Selphie didn't recognize.

Upon hearing Rinoa's entrance, Angelo maneuvered through the rearranged furniture and leapt to his owner's knees happily. Rinoa patted her loyal partner's head as she looked at Selphie curiously, "What're you doing?"

Blushing and embarrassed, Selphie released a nervous, "Oh n-nothing."

Obviously not caring to ask much more Rinoa scurried over the stacked up furniture until she came to her room's door. Nimbly she opened it and climbed through the opening. The stranger who'd come with Rinoa stood quietly by the door not giving any sign to how he felt or what he was even doing there. Selphie shifted on her feet uncomfortably as she heard Rinoa thumping through drawers and random articles loudly in her room.

"Hey Squall?" She called out several minutes later.

"Yeah?" The stranger replied sonorously.

"I can't seem to find it right now— I'll keep looking, I'll bring it back to you as soon as I can."

"What? You lost it?" He snapped angrily.

"I just can't **find **it. There's a difference. It's in my room somewhere, I'll bring it back to you I promise." Rinoa stuck her head out from a small clearing of the furniture leading from her room door and gave a feeble smile, "I'm sorry."

The stranger, Squall, crossed his arms and stared away in silence. After a few moments he looked back to Rinoa and as coldly as he could, said, "You better bring it back." With that, Squall turned sharply and left the dorm without another word.

Confused from the whole situation, Selphie turned to Rinoa rapidly and watched her crawl out of the mess of disorganized furniture. Once she could stand straight again, she took a seat on the stacked study table and began playing with a ring that lay in the palm of her hand.

"What was that about?" Selphie squeaked coming closer to Rinoa to observe the silver spectacle.

"This little thing," Rinoa said calmly holding the ring out so Selphie could see it better.

"If that's what he wanted, why didn't you just give it to him?"

Rinoa peered at Selphie, pursed her lips, and squinted her eyes as though postulating something. Finally, she released a sigh and replied, "I like talking to him— he just doesn't talk much. Maybe if he knows I still have his ring, he'll be more inclined to come talk to me, at least to find out if I found the ring or not. Plus, while trying to talk to him earlier I just made a fool of myself. At least now I make it up."

Selphie still looked puzzled when Rinoa concluded. Groaning a bit she continued, "It's like this, I just want him to have a reason to talk to me."

"Oooh." Selphie said nodding finally.

Rinoa relaxed back on the oddly stationed furniture and took a look around the room, "Speaking of bizarre behavior… what're you doing?"

Selphie's eyes lit up excitedly, "Well I got asked to the ball!"

With a bored yawn, Rinoa laid back unimpressed, "Let me guess, Irvine?"

"Oh— no, um someone else. Nida, from the Student Festival Committee."

Rinoa shot up with a new sense of enthusiasm, "You don't say! Kinneas didn't ask you out?" While watching Selphie slowly shake her head confused, Rinoa leapt from her seat of random furniture and landed closely in front of Selphie. "So let me guess, you're getting all prepared? That's a good idea, you never know when the SeeD examination is going to be! Well let's get started then, what're you going to wear?"

Selphie blinked with bewilderment and reached for her skirt spreading it out further to show Rinoa.

"You're joking right?" Rinoa spat bluntly.

"Well what do people wear to balls?"

"For starters, the only people who wear their school uniform are SeeDs. New SeeDs especially, veteran SeeDs can choose. Otherwise, people dress up really fancily. Men in suits or tuxedos, women in dresses."

"I have a dress! Matron gave me one!" Selphie jumped ecstatically and raced back into her room. After a few moments of loud shuffling, Selphie returned in the common room wearing a pure white sundress made from light flowing material that moved gracefully with every step. With a small twirl, watching the folds flare outward, Selphie smiled waiting for Rinoa's approval.

"That is pretty Selphie," She started, with an implied 'but' in her tone, "it's just not ball material." Without looking at Selphie's disappointed face, Rinoa leapt from her seat of stack furniture and scurried into her room. A few moments later, she returned with a glittering white dress strung on a hanger. "This is more what you'd wear."

Selphie's eyes were captivated on the beautiful dress, it gleamed from its shiny material with small intricate beads around the chest area and veil that covered the shoulders with a white strap that looped around the neck of the hanger. Although short, it was one of the most beautiful articles of clothing Selphie had ever laid eyes on.

Rinoa held out the dress for Selphie, confused however, Selphie simply continued to look and gaze into the white lace longer. "Try it on silly." She finally said forcing it into Selphie's arms.

Without another word, Selphie carefully removed the hanger and delicately held the dress into her room. Within a few minutes, she'd removed her sundress and replaced it with Rinoa's party dress. She skipped merrily to show Rinoa. "TA-DA!"

Rinoa's face fell as she watched Selphie twirl. The outfit no doubt turned lovely, unfortunately it appeared far to big for Selphie's scrawny figure. Selphie, however, occupied herself by spinning madly about excited in the new clothing. "Well this won't work," Rinoa said finally stopping Selphie her tracks.

"What's wrong?" Selphie asked now even more disappointed.

Smiling kindly towards Selphie's ever devastated appearance, Rinoa replied happily, "Nothing's wrong, actually this works out great! Go change we're going shopping!"

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine exited the long black gates that sheltered the Garden's premises. The day's cooling breeze blew through his long hair as he leaned against the linear metal poles and yawned in boredom. Classes were out, no Rinoa, and for the first time in so long he didn't have a date to run off too. What was there to do for entertainment?

Before his mind formulated any ideas, he heard a familiar voice growing louder from behind him. Knowing exactly to whom the voice belonged, Irvine spun around to spot Rinoa with Angelo and her feet and Selphie at her side.

"Hello ladies," Irvine greeted with his natural charm. He lifted his hat deftly and bowed. "May I ask what brings you two here?"

Selphie giggled while Rinoa rolled her eyes, "We're going shopping." Rinoa replied bluntly.

Blinking several times, Irvine stood back with a certain realization. Rinoa mentioned before she liked Selphie, but had she completely used her as a replacement for him? Irvine was the one she always dragged to go shopping; when in Hyne's name did that change?

"Do you want to come with us Irvy?" Selphie asked sweetly.

At that moment, Irvine actually noticed Selphie's ensemble. Her small frame stood still while her angelic sundress blew gracefully in the wind. The soft and flowing material danced its way to Irvine's knees. "Yeah, I'd like that." He replied involuntarily. A moment later, Irvine yanked back his head towards Rinoa. An odd feeling swept over him as he and Rinoa hadn't spoken since their fight a few days ago.

Rinoa thought for a moment, with a stern look plastered over her face. A few moments she smiled and said, "That's great! Come on then!"

'''''''''''''''''''''

"So everything with Rinoa is resolved I take it?"

Seifer leaned back in his chair to the point of it resting against its back legs alone. He gazed through the thin windows that covered the top perimeter of the classroom. For the past half hour, Instructor Trepe droned over SeeD examination preparations and somewhere between checking his G.F.'s known abilities and stocking their recovery items, he'd zoned out.

"Seifer?"

"Check." He replied monotonously as his feet pushed his chair back a bit further. He finally turned towards his Instructor who had her eyes squinted in indifference. "I said check." He said defensively.

"Well glad to hear that you two are doing well then." Instructor Trepe replied quietly.

"Wai- what? Who're you talking about?" Seifer sputtered as he returned his chair on all its legs.

Instructor Trepe held the back of her hand to her mouth as she laughed gracefully, "I knew you stopped listening when we were talking about Pet Houses." She folded her hands neatly on her lap and smiled concluding her laughs. "So everything is ready then! You're all set for the exam. You have no excuse to be absent at the Inauguration Ball then."

"Except for the fact it's a total and utter waste of time? It's a silly party that people watch other people dance." Seifer remarked snidely.

"Nonsense!" Instructor Trepe cried standing up. She crossed her arms and paced around Seifer, "It's an elegant tradition of Gardens to commemorate the success of their students, no higher honor that I can think of." She sat against the edge of her desk, and with one hand pressed to her chest continued, "I myself attend every year since my Inauguration. I always look forward to it."

"So you'll be there?" Seifer asked raising an eyebrow.

Quistis sat back down and smiled, "Yes, I certainly expect you to attend as well! In fact, you owe me a dance."

"I have a problem though," Mumbled Seifer turning his head to the floor.

"Yes, what is it?"

"I don't know how to dance."

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Rinoa brought Irvine and Selphie to the most pricey and fashionable boutique in Balamb. As the most respectable and memorable customer, sales associates were extra kind to Rinoa and overlooked things with her, including the fact she usually brought along her canine companion.

While Selphie and Irvine kept Angelo company, Rinoa fished through catalogs, racks, and observed the occasional mannequin determined to find a suit for Selphie.

"What's her size?" A sale associate asked Rinoa.

"I don't actually know, just get me the smallest one you have. I want it shiny, fancy, stunning—and well you get the picture!"

Three sales associates took what Rinoa said and continued their search while Rinoa took a seat beside Selphie and Irvine. "Whew, I'm exhausted." She sighed.

"What did you even do?" Irvine snapped sardonically.

"Hey, shopping is not as easy as I make it out to be," Rinoa responded proudly, "I single handedly check every dress to make sure it'll be absolute perfection on the wearer. In addition, when I'm running low on money I actually have to check to price tags."

"Ms. Caraway, we have some selections for you to look at, would you like to come see?" A sales clerk said as she came up to the three of them.

Rinoa stood up and brushed herself off, "I'll go check them out first and if I like what I see I'll have you try them on, okay? Just leave it to me—I'm the queen of fashion." With that, she followed the clerk and disappeared behind the rows of mannequins and racks of clothing.

"Wow, Rinoa is so sweet. Look how hard she's working for me… I kind of feel bad." Selphie whispered guiltily sitting herself down beside Angelo.

"Don't, Rinoa lives for clothes. Sometimes when we were young, she'd say she was going to run away from Garden to join a school of fashion so she could be a designer."

"Well why didn't she?"

` "She discovered a sewing machine, and how the two of them would never produce anything worthy of being worn hehe. Since then, she decided to admire clothing from afar and not try to make them again."

Selphie giggled and came to her feet to sit by Irvine. "I can't wait, it's going to be so amazing. You'll come, won't you?"

"To the ball? Course', I'm planning on being a SeeD ya know." Irvine responded tapping his chest proudly. Selphie smiled, reassured and went back to fiddling with Angelos' attention. "Speaking of the ball, I was wondering if ya wanted to join me, as an escort."

Slowly, Selphie turned to Irvine distressed and quiet. "Oh Irvy—" She hung her head and looked away, "I'd love to, really."

Irvine smiled, although confused about her prior look, he placed his hands on Selphie's shoulders to bring her for a hug until she started to speak again.

"But I already promised Nida I'd go with him. I'm sorry."

"Y-you're going with someone else? Nida? The nerd from the Student Festival thing?" Irvine felt punched in the stomach. How could someone beat him to this? Someone else asked Selphie, and she agreed! Not just someone, an absolute dork that Irvine knew he could take down a few seconds, tops.

"Oh Irvy, please don't be upset." Selphie started again.

"Naw, naw, I'm not upset." Irvine responded quickly trying to console Selphie. He was the one who dawdled, he didn't need to guilt her about it. _Maybe if I make her feel bad enough she'll tell Nida to hit the bri— oh forget it. _"Really I'm not, don' t you worry your pretty head about me. I'll just ask someone else."

Before Selphie could apologize again, Rinoa returned with a grand smile and garment bag, "Alright! I've scoured everything they got and I know this will look fabulous on you." She dropped the bag onto Selphie's lap. Unsure of what to make of the pearl poncho like thing on her lap, Selphie looked back at Rinoa blankly. "It's inside the bag silly, go on try it on. The dressing rooms are in the back."

A clerk behind Rinoa smiled and gestured to Selphie leading her away. Rinoa smiled proudly and sat herself beside Irvine, who appeared slightly preoccupied. "What's eating you?" She asked in a less empathetic tone than normal.

"Selphie's goin' with Nida to Inauguration Ball?" Irvine asked hoping for a different answer.

"Oh right," Rinoa said quietly.

"You knew?"

"Well of course, why do you think we came shopping? I'm expecting to wear my uniform, or if not I have a dozen gowns."

"You knew? That's why you let me come with ya guys!"

Irvine stood up and stared at Rinoa darkly, "Ya wouldn't have helped her get a dress if she were going with me, huh?"

"Irvine, that is not true! I wanted you to come too, I was hoping we could talk again, I mean I don't us fighting…"

"Explain to me something Rinoa, why the hell does it both ya so much that I might like her? That I might want to be with her?"

Rinoa came to her feet and returned Irvine a stern stare, "Because Irvine, I like her and she's been through enough trauma. She shouldn't be with a guy who will so easily hurt her again. She should with someone stable, like Nida. He's a nice guy."

"I'm not a nice guy, huh?" Irvine snapped.

"That's not what I meant! But let's face it, you're not boyfriend material."

"You are such a bitch. I'm outta here." With that, Irvine turned on his heels and marched out.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''

"Now dance is actually quite simple," Quistis started.

Seifer stood before her his hands appropriately placed on Instructor Trepe's shoulder and waist. The two stood in position as Quistis briefly described what his feet ought to do shortly. Left foot back, right foot to the side— Seifer tried to concentrate but felt oddly distracted.

"Do you understand what to do?" His instructor broke his dozing. A few blinks later, he smirked wily without answering. "You didn't listen to me at all did you?"

"I'm just in awe of your magnificence, Instructor." Seifer replied finally with his thin wry smile.

"Pay attention Seifer!" Quistis snapped, "Left foot back, right foot to the side, and twirl me, left foot to the right…"

Seifer sincerely attempted to keep paying attention but it proved difficult. Despite the fact he still appeared confused after Instructor Trepe finished repeating the routine a second time, she turned on some music for a trial run. Upon hearing the melody strum through his ears, Seifer's grip on Instructor Trepe slightly tightened as he tried to correspond his feet's movements to the beat.

Perhaps Seifer lied about not being able to dance, for the moment his foot moved backwards the rest of the dance flowed, he twirled Instructor Trepe gracefully and they swept to the side, released hands for a moment, switched places, rejoined hands and moved gently and smoothly, back and forth. After the routine came to its third round, Trepe smiled and said, "You're truly a natural! Alright the finale is simple, instead of continuing dancing after my next twirl lift me."

Seifer, still smiling, did as he was told and spun Instructor Trepe's petite body, then put both hands around her waist and lifted her upwards. Like a swan, her arms reached up and while one leg bent in the air. Suspended in her position, Seifer paused watching her.

"You can put me back down." Instructor Trepe laughed. Continuing to do as she said, Seifer brought her back to her feet. "Step in." They did so. "Step out." Therefore, they did. "Step in, and dip."

Carefully, Seifer leaned and tilted his instructor until she stood diagonally in his arms. Slowly and ever gently, he brought back to her feet. Standing straight, the two were so close that the bridges of their noses met.

Seifer felt anxious as he could feel Instructor Trepe's soft breathing on his lips. Without any voluntary thought, Seifer tilted his head gently and moved his face even closer.

_Do what you want and say what you want, for those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind._  
_-Dr. Suess_


	30. Chapter 29

"_Shinbun nanka iranai"  
__("I don't need newpapers")_

_Beautiful World  
__Chapter Twenty-Nine_

Much to Seifer's surprise, Instructor Trepe hadn't pushed Seifer away, in fact if he didn't know any better he could feel her moving closer on her own accord.

To begin with, there was little space to be found between them. Now they were a hair away from touching lips. Seifer's anticipation and excitement rose while in his mind he screamed, _why hasn't she stopped me? Why haven't __**I **__stopped me?_ Instructor Trepe stood gently in his hold, her warm breath the only thing he could feel or understand. His mind silenced and then—

The loud hissing from the classroom door broke the silence. Following that disruption came a voice that made Seifer's entire body shake with anger. "Instructor Trepe?" Squall called as he walked in calmly.

Instructor Trepe had escaped from Seifer's grasp so quickly, Seifer didn't notice it even happen. She stood several feet away almost appearing embarrassed and flushed. "Squall, you made it. I didn't even see the time just slip away." With a small laugh, Instructor Trepe pushed a lock of hair behind her ear and smiled brightly at Seifer's nemesis.

Stiffly, Seifer walked over to Instructor Trepe and hissed, "You called him here?"

Returning Seifer's discourtesy, Instructor Trepe muttered back under breath, "Yes I did, are we not done here?"

Seifer squinted his eyes darkly as he shuffled out of the room, "Oh we're done here alright." He uttered coolly bumping Squall's shoulder as he made his apparent exit.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

"So why did Irvy leave so suddenly?" Selphie asked as she watched the sales clerk carefully pack Rinoa's handpicked gown into a slim box.

Rinoa shrugged dully without much interest, "I don't know. He said he had stuff to do." With a hint of resentment in her voice, she added quickly, "Probably a girl if I know him well enough."

Selphie dropped her head sadly, already missing Irvine who'd only been gone for a short while, "Oh okie…"

Despite being incredibly angry with Irvine, Rinoa knew bad mouthing him to Selphie was beneath her. "He didn't say anything like that Selphie, he's just busy. You know the SeeD exam could be any day, anytime. So, whenever we have time to just prepare, we all should be taking advantage of it. That's most likely what Irvine went off to do." She smiled at Selphie, "Cheer up, he has preparing to do, but so do you! Come on we have to get shoes to match with this!"

Before Selphie even saw the total bill for the gown that lay delicately packed in tissue paper and boxed, Rinoa had paid and yanked Selphie's arm to the next shop.

'''''''''''''''''

Irvine spent most of the day outside of Garden, shooting Bug Bites, perfecting his aim. Guns and shooting took a place in Irvine's heart that no woman had ever been able to replace. The several dozens of dead insects soothed the cowboy as he with grace returned to Garden, the sun setting on the plains behind him.

As he crossed through the courtyard, he noticed Seifer perched on a stone bench. Irvine seldom saw Seifer ever alone, if not with Rinoa he had his posse of Fujin and Rajin always by his side. Obviously Seifer didn't attend Rinoa's shopping trip, but what was he doing out here? Waiting for her perhaps? Whatever the reason, Irvine spotted Seifer as a minor time killer and approached the bench and took a seat.

"Hey," He greeted calmly as he shifted to make himself as comfortable as he could on the hard seating.

"No matter what you promise, the answer is no." Seifer responded monotonously. "I'm straight as a line."

Irvine squinted his eyes irritably already regretting his decision to speak with the infamously cranky Seifer. Although Rinoa sung his praises about being a passionate person, all Irvine ever witnessed was a jerk. However, if he walked off now Seifer would have seemingly chased him away with his gay joke, however pitiful it was.

"Aw don't be like that, you'll enjoy it. It wouldn't be considered cheatin' neither since I've slept with Rinoa too." Irvine winked. His joke was met with dark grimace from Seifer that didn't look promising.

"Kidding man! For starters, Rinoa and I are not like that, and second off— eh you're just not my type. I mean you got the whole green eyes and blonde hair going for you but I usually like it—"

"Say what you needed or the only thing going up your ass will be my sword!" Seifer snapped.

"Gee, killjoy. I was just wonderin' what ya were doin' out here— alone. Not like ya."

"I was waiting for Rinoa. With my luck she'll be with that damn Squall."

"Squall? What does he have to do with anything?"

"He's **everywhere**. Every time I turn my damn back he's at it— messing with me by using the women in my life."

Irvine chuckled, "Ya mean wo**man**. Face it Seifer, you're no me. You've got one gal in the world and that's Rinoa. Chill, she's not cheating on you or nothin'. If she was I would've known about it by now." As Irvine relaxed confident in what he said, a lingering thought overcame him as he thought about Rinoa's peculiar behavior about Squall. One time awhile ago she'd admitted she had feelings for another guy, and while Irvine had joked and teased Rinoa for having an affair causing their spat, he began to wonder the validity of what he claimed.

"There's women in my life you ass." Seifer retorted haughtily. With that, he stood up and huffed away bitterly.

Nearly ten minutes later, Irvine overheard Selphie's familiar and high-pitched voice squeaking endless thank-you's. Deftly, Irvine hid behind a large potted plant and watched the girls arrive, hands full with shopping bags.

"Selphie really, I love shopping. You don't owe me anything, this is petty cash to me. Plus, it was like dressing up a life-size doll, it was fun for me too." Rinoa smiled genuinely at Selphie who almost appeared as though she'd cry from joy. She squeezed Rinoa in a tight hug.

"Evening ladies," Irvine said as he stepped from the plant. He lifted his cowboy hat and tipped it towards his girls. "Can I help you with those?"

"Irvy! You're not with a girl!" Selphie cheered rushing over to hug him as well. Irvine returned the embrace while angrily looking over her shoulder to Rinoa, who shrugged guiltily.

"Nah, why would I be when I got you two? But— I was hoping I could talk to Rinoa for a few minutes, do ya mind?" Irvine shined his handsome smile making Selphie giggle, blush, and then agree automatically.

"I'm going to take these to our room, okie?" Selphie squeaked excitedly raising her full arms of shopping bags. After receiving an encouraging nod from Rinoa, Selphie skipped off.

The silence between Irvine and Rinoa held thickly around them. Breaking the quiet, Irvine stepped forward letting the echo of his footfalls create enough sound to make him feel comfortable. He rubbed the back of his neck and sighed, "Listen, sorry I called you a bitch."

Rinoa smiled and began talking quickly as though she wouldn't receive another chance, "It's alright, listen I would've taken her shopping even if she was your date. I mean, the whole reason I'm even friends with Selphie is because she's important to you so I wanted to like her and get to know her." She took in a deep breath and stared off into the distance, "But lately it seems like she's the reason we're fighting in the first place."

Irvine held up his hands gently, "It's alright, I overreacted—"

"Wait, listen to me. As your friend I won't get in the way of whatever you want to do, but as Selphie's, I want you to be super careful about whatever you decide."

Irvine raised his hand politely, signaling to his babbling friend that he wanted to speak. With a roll of her eyes, Rinoa exhaled loudly showing she'd finished what she wanted to say. "Thanks, for that er— I guess, I wanted to talk to ya about something else though."

Confused, Rinoa raised an eyebrow gesturing him to continue.

Rubbing the back of his neck a bit harder this time around, he anxiously shifted his weight foot to foot, the stillness lasting longer each second. "It's just been something I've been thinkin' about. Now, I dunno how to ask ya this, but uh—are you cheating on Seifer?"

The quiet stillness that daunted only a fraction of a second ago broke with Rinoa's shrill yelling. Her eyes bulged with ferocity and frustration. "What did you ask me?" Although she noticed Irvine trying to protest, or defend himself, she continued to berate him. "Did Seifer put you to this? What an asshole, he ignores me and gets **YOU** to do his dirty work? If he thinks I'm having an affair then maybe he should just try spending more time with me instead of trying to avoid me! What a** jerk**!"

Irvine continued squinting his eyes as a feeble protection and attempting to speak up for himself, however Rinoa's rage proved far too powerful for him to surpass. Giving up the will to argue, he simply gleamed an innocent smile hoping Rinoa would keep her anger set towards Seifer instead of him, it did appear after all that they just overcame a large spat.

"AND YOU!" The fired brunette screamed breathing in hard.

_Oh damn it to hell— _Irvine thought miserably.

"YOU'RE MY BEST FRIEND IRVINE! YOU SHOULD DEFEND ME NOT ENCOURAGE HIS PARANOIA! IF THERE WAS SOMETHING HAPPENING, DON'T YOU THINK I'D HAVE TOLD **YOU**?"

Holding his eyes closed, Irvine shouted finally, "Rin just listen to me for a minu—!"

"You know what? I'm going to pretend this did not just happen," She inhaled deeply and returned her voice back to its normal volume and tone, "That's right, you apologized and then I left, goodnight Irvine!" With that, Rinoa sharply maneuvered around him and ran into Garden without stop.

_That could've gone better… _Irvine sighed hopelessly to himself.

''''''''''''''''''''

The next morning arrived and Selphie barely slept for a full minute, her excitement that came along with the purchases made the day before filled her body head to toe with anxiousness making her only a thousand times more hyper than normal. Despite how desperately it showed that Selphie wanted to wear the dress, shoes and all other items bought, Rinoa told her it'd best wait till the night of the Inauguration ball. Selphie tossed and turned uneasily all night yearning for the next day to bring her to the momentous occasion she so dearly desired to attend.

However, when Selphie set out the next morning, she realized a crucial factor that stood between her and the perfect image of the ball; she still hadn't learned how to dance! Horrified by her discovery, Selphie rushed to Matron's office almost a full hour early, frantically praying that Matron could help her.

_Please be there, PLEASE BE THERE!_ Selphie's fists tightened as she hurried her pace through the empty halls to the main artery elevator. To Selphie's luck, when she entered the Headmaster's grand office, it bustled full of life. Faculty and staff fled about the room. Although Selphie felt rather confused about why the office was so crowded today, she decided to blame it on her unique timing of arrival. She whizzed passed the crowds into Matron's smaller and quieter office.

"Selphie! Oh you dear little thing, you've come so early!" Matron greeted as Selphie zoomed inside and onto a chair in front of her desk. She gracefully pushed her long silky hair back and rested herself at her desk. "Although, I am afraid that despite your eager attitude, I'm quite busy today. You see, today is the SeeD exam, I'm sure you've heard of it, after all your friends must've been working very hard preparing for this."

"The SeeD exam is today? So that means the ball is today then too, right?" Selphie exclaimed in both a happy and worried tone.

Matron smiled beautifully, "Why yes little one, that's right. I take it you'll be attending. You mentioned you were on the Student Festival Committee, correct? I do hope you and your fellow members have completed your work."

Biting her lip nervously, Selphie nodded, "Yeah, we're done but I kinda have a problem Matron."

With a gentle touch of Edea's soft hand upon Selphie's arm, she asked her in her melodic voice, "What can I do to be of service?"

Relaxed by Matron's stroke, Selphie grinned sheepishly and asked quietly, "Can you teach me to dance?"

Appearing shocked, Matron came to her feet and clasped her hands together, "Dance? For the ball? Well of course I can!"

"You're not too busy are ya?"

"Oh fiddle with that! This is an emergency! Come with me; come now we've no time to lose!" Edea grasped Selphie's hand and led her out of the office, pulled her through the crowds into Headmaster Cid's quarters. "Cid! Cid darling we have an emergency!"

The plump, elderly headmaster appeared from the side of the room, "What is it Edea? Another distress call?" He asked panicked.

"No! I need to teach Selphie here how to dance!" She cried in response.

With a rather bored stare, Cid sighed loudly and rested on his grand chair. Wiping perspiration from his brow with an elegant handkerchief, he sighed loudly. "Edea, you must be joking, we don't have time for that. Esthar is calling non-stop. We need to get the students and SeeDs organized for the mission."

As she narrowed her large brown eyes snidely, Edea crossed her arms, "Now Cid, you know as well as I how important dance is to me." Headmaster Cid groaned as if to say, 'not this again'.

Watching curiously, Selphie observed as Matron gracefully spun around and began speaking, "You know Selphie, I met my husband here at a ball, during a dance in fact." While Selphie listened enthused, Edea rested her slender bodice of Cid's desk as she stared into the distance as she reminisced. "You see, after the Sorceress War, I was looked at as a fearful person. After the world realized I meant no one any harm, many looked to me as an icon of power. I received suitors from all across the world, the best known and authoritative men of our time!"

Selphie watched in awe, Cid grumbled sourly to himself.

"In fact, Vinzer Deling and the owner of Wood Incorporation asked for my hand! Vinzer Deling is the current president of Galbadia and Wood Incorporation is an enormous industry that makes and sells almost anything you can think of! Well, back to what I was talking about— the ball. You see there was an annual ball in Esthar's presidential palace celebrating Adel's defeat. President Laguna invited me personally, and there—" Edea paused slowly and looked back at her seemingly bitter husband, "There was Cid. He had just snuck into the party, seeking a wealthy employer," She giggled angelically, "Instead he found me."

Headmaster Cid finally smiled and joined to where Edea sat, "Yes, and even though she looked too grand to ever notice a nobody like myself, I dared ask her to a dance."

"And in that dance, I felt safer and happier than I had ever been. I knew in that one dance that I had indeed met someone truly special. Although the world had been thrown at my feet, I chose to go with this man whose heart was pure and full of love rather than power and wealth." Edea blinked back a few glimmering tears that lined her eyes, "Penniless, he promised me he'd make my dreams come true, and he did."

Matron gently hugged her husband, "Alright Edea, you win. We'll teach Selphie how to dance!"

Selphie wiped her face with the back of her arm and leapt up excitedly, along with Matron who jumped back with joy that her story struck Cid's soft spot. "Let's do it!" Selphie cheered.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''

An announcement sounded that all students who qualified for the SeeD exam were to immediately prepare themselves and report the 2nd floor corridor to meet their instructors.

Rinoa rushed to the second floor without much thought, with her head still stuck in last night's frustration. While she tried to rationalize to herself all night long, she decided to confront Seifer herself. Before she met with the chance, the announcement called out. Rinoa scurried into her school uniform, equipped her new blaster edge, the Wishing Star, stuffed her pockets with a few potions and ran off.

Still upset, Rinoa didn't check much else of anything, the type of potions she took, how many, and what magic she had. Instead, she ran headstrong into the overly crowded hallway between the bushels of people. Before she found her own instructor and familiar group of classmates, she saw Instructor Trepe organizing her students. Standing in the front close by stood Seifer.

Narrowing her eyes bitterly, Rinoa stomped her way to him. "Seifer Almasy, I've got a bone to pick with you!" She snapped.

Seifer turned to her and raised an eyebrow curiously, "What? Do you have to talk right now? I'm kind of in the middle of something."

With a small fit of fake laughter, Rinoa shouted back, "Oh ho ho ho! You'd like nothing better than to not talk to me about what you did. Smoooooth Seifer, huh?"

No longer trying to feign patience, Seifer gritted his teeth. "I don't know what the hell you're talking about but get lost, you're starting to embarrass me," He hissed furiously. Rinoa scrunched her face together, but before she could muster a reply—

"Is there a problem here?" Instructor Trepe asked calmly.

"Not at all, Instructor." Seifer replied in a sleazy voice, "Just getting rid of a bother." He smirked at Instructor Trepe wryly, "I'm ready when you are, Instructor."

Rinoa looked as though she might've exploded on the spot. Her eyes grew and her heart pounded with fury. She opened her mouth to refute just when Quistis spoke again. "I see then, well Rinoa why don't you head to your instructor? I have a student who will join you soon enough."

Sputtering in contempt, she quietly without another word stomped away.

"It's not me is it?" Seifer groaned imagining Rinoa chewing his ear off the entire mission. He could see it now, Rinoa huffing, puffing, and blowing the party away with her anger and unknown frustration. _What in Hyne's name is she so ticked about anyways? Doesn't matter, I'll worry about it once this is over with. _

"Trouble in paradise?" Quistis asked with a small, somewhat snide, chuckle. Seifer glared back at her, uneasy with her nonchalant attitude about what happened the night before. "If you must know, no you're not being sent there."

"Who is then?"

"I don't see how it concerns you. Your only focus today is your mission, not Rinoa's."

"She's my girlfriend I should be allowed to know."

"Ah, your girlfriend, now it's clear!" Quistis said with mocking laugh as she walked away to an arriving student, Squall. "Squall, there you are! Go ahead and meet with your group leader, Rinoa Caraway, she's just down the hall." Instructor Trepe winked pleasantly, "And good luck!" When she turned about to meet with Seifer's fuming gaze, she shrugged and sighed, "I don't make the groups, Seifer. I've just been told them. Now stop being so frazzled, it's unbecoming of a group leader.

"What? **I'm** a squad leader?" Seifer raised an eyebrow unsure of how that happened.

"As shocking as it is to me as well, you are. Believe me, by no choice of mine. Anyways, you'll be joined with some snipers shortly."

''''''''''''''''''''''

Rinoa tapped her foot impatiently as she awaited for her instructor to tell her, something, anything. He'd not once acknowledged any of the students that stood anxiously before him. Annoyed to no end, Rinoa shifted her weight foot to foot as she scanned the hallways for familiar faces. Only a few moments afterwards, Irvine came into sight.

He grinned kindly, appearing happy they weren't in a disagreement currently. As he approached, Instructor Akii stuck his arm out, without even peering over her clipboard, to stop him. "Your group is meeting over with Instructor Trepe, Irvine." He mumbled. Irvine looked at Rinoa, who shrugged and graced him with a genuine smile as she mouthed 'Good luck.' Tipping his hat appreciatively, which he wore despite having to wear his school uniform, he turned around and left.

As Irvine slipped through the crowds, two more familiar faces came towards her. One was Zell, and the other was— "Squall?" Rinoa said aloud in a very loud and blunt voice.

"Ah right, Instructor Trepe's star pupil." Instructor Akii greeted as he patted Squall's shoulder. "I heard nothing but fantastic things of you, Squall. I'm sure you'll do us all proud in today's exam." Squall responded by saluting in silence.

"What're you doing here?" Rinoa continued in her same blunt tone.

"Right, Rinoa meet your group members, Squall Loire and Zell Dintch." Instructor Akii said brightly.

"That's alright! We all already know each other." Zell replied excitedly as he punched his fists together. "Come on Rinoa, we're going to knock this mission dead!"

Squall stayed silent letting Zell continue his excitement pre-test banter.

"You three make up Bridge Squad A." Akii nodded his head to Rinoa. "Rinoa is the group leader, follow her orders. Since you three are already well acquainted, you can go ahead and head to town. There are vessels at the dock, find your appropriate one and you'll be off. A SeeD will be with you to brief you on the mission. Good luck to all of you."

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

"Snipers? Then that means—" Seifer started. Balamb Garden had a small number of snipers, and of those an even fewer amount were any good.

"Howdy there, leader!" Irvine laughed cheerfully as he passed Quistis. "I can't believe of all the students takin' the exam I get stuck with you. Hyne must not like me much today." He continued watching Seifer's face grow more and more irritable.

Instructor Trepe nodded holding back her laughter caused by Seifer's incredibly obvious annoyance about the situation, "Yes, Irvine and Baku will be with you."

"Who's Baku?" Irvine and Seifer asked in union both with the same confused faces.

"I prefer to be called Number 1, as I am the number 1 Trepe Groupie!" called an overly dramatic voice from behind Irvine. The three turned to see the dark skinned student Baku. He ignored his group members as he swept passed them and came before Quistis. He grasped her hand and lightly kissed it, "Ah Instructor Trepe, I will do my best to make you proud."

Instructor Trepe yanked her hand away and brushed off gently with a small forced chuckle, "Heh, yes of course Baku. I would like you to meet your group members, Irvine Kinneas and your leader Seifer Almasy."

"Oh it's you," Seifer blurted, "you're that kid who's always asleep in the front of the class."

"Only because my thoughts of the wonderful Instructor Trepe keep me up at night!" Baku cried out passionately.

"Okay! Well then, let's head off to the docks! Good luck!" Quistis said hurriedly, hastily making an exit.

'''''''''''''''''''''

"Well I don't think I'll be able to complete the finale with you," Headmaster Cid said with a chuckle as he spun Selphie out. "Unfortunately I'm not quite the man I was all those years ago."

Edea strummed her fingers over the music player resting on Cid's desk and closed the music. "Now Selphie, do you think you'll be able to practice yourself till tonight?"

Selphie bowed politely to Headmaster Cid as Matron instructed her. She spun around excitedly and rushed over to Edea, "Oh Matron thank you, thank you, thank you!" She threw her arms around her and squeezed as hard as her small strength could manage. "I'm going to go back to my room and practice aaaaall day!" She released Edea and skipped out of the room.

Headmaster Cid rested on his grand chair as he wiped the small beads of sweat, "Well that took quite a lot out of me." He looked over to his wife sassily smiled at him.

"You know, you're wrong about one thing." She flipped the music back on, "You still are the man from those years back."

''''''''''''''''''''

Rinoa rocked back and forth by involuntary motion of the vessel her and her teammates sat in. Usually an instructor comes along with the groups, but with the large amounts of students actually qualified to attend the exam, not every group was so fortunate.

Since the car ride, neither she nor Squall uttered a word. Squall appeared distressed, and every once and awhile he'd stroke his hand over his fingers, longing for his ring that Rinoa knowingly kept hostage. Seeing his yearning over his lost possession, Rinoa felt a surge of guilt smack her in the gut. Despite how upset he seemed over it, the cool chestnut haired student sat quietly observing his view of the quickly passing ocean.

"Man, it is dull in here." Zell droned dizzily. He held his head between his massive hands and pursed his lips tightly shut when not speaking, obviously inclined to seasickness. "I'm getting some fresh air." He spat rushing out to the top of the deck.

With Zell gone, the silence felt heavier, as there was no one randomly interrupting it. Rinoa rubbed her arms and crossed her legs nervously awaiting Squall to finally confront her about his ring. She decided if he asked nicely enough she'd return it at the soonest moment. Surprisingly enough, Squall didn't speak up at all till half the trip had passed by in total silence. That only, because Rinoa started the conversation.

"Why is your ring so important to you?" She blurted, the guilt getting the best of her.

Squall slowly readjusted his attention to Rinoa. He never seemed taken aback that Squall, just always inconvenienced if anything. He rested his forehead over his crossed fingers and thought in silence. His head still facing the floor, he muttered, "Someone very important gave it to me. The same reason your ring is important to you."

Instantly, as though a reflex, Rinoa's white hand grasped the silver loop dangling off a chain around her neck. "Your mother?"

"You could say that…" Squall began, "Whoever it was, they're not around anymore. That ring was a gift from them."

Rinoa thought for a moment recollecting memories from her prior conversations with Squall. She parted her lips softly, "Your sister, right?"

Resting his head back onto the headrest, Squall sighed loudly. "Yes, my sister."

"I didn't know President Laguna had a daughter— when did she pass away?" Rinoa asked bluntly.

"…"

"Squall?" He'd ceased to reply. Sighing hopelessly, Rinoa gave up and lay back trying to relax. She'd return Squall's ring to him as soon as she returned to Garden. Until then, she'd have to just finish the exam with a calm piece of mind.

The cabin door swung open, and a refreshed Zell and SeeD entered. Zell threw himself into the seat beside Squall while massaging his face alongside of his intricate tattoo, looking much more enthused than before he'd left.

"If I may have your attention, I'd like to brief you on today's mission." The SeeD who'd entered with Zell stood at the front of the cabin with an illuminated screen glowing green behind her. The three students turned to her attentive. "We'd received a distress call from Esthar security station at the Great Salt Lake. Since the Lunar Cry, Esthar has taken extreme measures to return the monster population to manageable control. Around midnight today, the station reported an enormous outbreak of monsters coming from unsupervised territory near the mountainous regions.

"Currently Esthar isn't at the liberty of dispatching enough military agents to take care of this outbreak before it migrates to Fisherman's Horizon. As you know, FH doesn't have a military of their own, and since the outbreak started on Esthar land, they've decided to take full responsibility and stop it before it reaches FH. As far as we know, monsters haven't reached the bridge. As Bridge Team A it'll be your job to stop them if they reach that point, Bridge Team B will be stationed further down as a last resort, also as back up if you need them. Any questions?"

'''''''''''''''''''''''''

Seifer squinted his eyes at the blazing sun that beat mercilessly on him and his comrades.

"Alright men, you're to secure the north plateau, snipers you're job is to stop the flow of monsters from there, move, move, move!" Quistis commanded standing safely in the entrance of the war vessel. "Good luck team!"

Irritable from the heat, Seifer stared back at his instructor, "I hate people who wish me luck." He snapped instead of softly speaking in his silken voice.

"Yes, yes Seifer I know." Instructor Trepe sighed, "All of you be careful. SeeDs are on patrol watching you everywhere."

Seifer shrugged nonchalantly trying to keep his cool despite the unbearable heat. "Tweedle-dee, Tweedle-dum! Let's go!"

Baku frowned and turned to Irvine, "Is he always this mean?"

"Psh, this is good behavior." The cowboy said with a snicker. He cocked his rifle and rushed behind his blonde leader. Baku clicked his tongue, blew a kiss to his beloved instructor and hastily followed.

Every moment to the plateau felt piled to maximum with battles after battles. Seifer taunted monsters every moment leaving a trail of dead carcass behind them. Irvine and Seifer learned very soon that Baku fought with a pair of handguns, and despite their smaller kick back, Baku wasn't the best sniper accuracy. He suffered the fate of being untalented with every other weapon that handguns had become his only chance at fighting.

"Come on you hideous beasts, come on and show me what you got!" Seifer shouted mad with fighter rage.

Baku wiped his forehead with his sleeve as he grasped his kneecaps and bent down, exhaling loudly. "Dear Hyne! We're not even half way there! Why does he keep **calling **them? They actually respond!"

Irvine fanned his face with his hat, grateful for a few moments of peace, The entire way there, Irvine and sometimes Baku found themselves slightly handicapped since guns weren't the best method of fighting in close combat. Most of their trip running up and down was magic based, unless they could catch an enemy further away to actually shoot at. "Seifer, take it easy will ya? We're exhausted. You're forgetting that Tweedle-Dum and I have to keep at it when we get to the plateau."

"Hey!" Baku snapped.

Seifer turned around, "Stop your griping! This is our mission; the more we do the better. Speaking of which, you two are slowing me down. Get your asses up and hurry! The sooner we get to the plateau, the sooner you two can get lazy bums on the ground shooting your be-be guns." While Seifer ignored the dark and evil stares of his teammates he noticed something coming towards him rather quickly, not a monster however— a girl with black hair.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''

"Rinoa where the heck are you going?" Zell called towards his fast moving leader, "The bridge is that way!" He pointed behind him. Squall swiftly passed him following Rinoa without question. "Squall, man what're you doing? Stop her!"

"She's the leader." Squall replied flatly keeping up with Rinoa's pace relatively well.

When the three of them had coasted by the security station, Rinoa spotted the trail of messily killed monsters and recognized immediately the handiwork of the infamous Almasy. Seeing the monsters, she remembered how fumingly angry she was with him. Unable to shake the topic off mind, she followed the trail to get a quick explanation. _A quick explanation, then we go to the bridge, no problem! _Rinoa convinced herself there'd be no issue in a small detour; however she didn't know how far Seifer had actually gone on his monster ravaging. After half an hour of following the corpses, Rinoa knew they should head back, _but it'd be a waste then! At least let me make the most of us coming this far!_

Finally, three dark figures came into vision. As Rinoa sped up, she could see Seifer, Irvine, and someone she didn't recognize standing about in their dark navy school uniforms. Although Seifer never stopped fighting as far as Rinoa could see, but he appeared to be taking a break currently. "Seifer!" She called out as loudly as she could.

"Are you kidding me?" Zell retorted. He halted in his tracks no longer interested in following his team leader. Squall too stopped and watched curiously unsure why the three of them hurriedly came this way just to talk to someone.

"I'll just be a minute you guys." Rinoa called back to them. She leapt over the last few yards, "Seifer! I need to talk to you!"

Seifer pushed away from his squad, bounded over a freshly slain pile of monsters, and stiffly confronted Rinoa. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"I needed to talk to you, and you ignored me!" Rinoa replied angrily.

"Gee Rin, I wonder why! Don't you see we're in the middle of our most important exam? Whatever you want to talk about, it can wait! Get to your post, and leave me to mine." He spun about haughtily, "Tweedle-dee, tweedle-dum let's move!"

Rinoa stood in alone surrounded by the dead creatures feeling humiliated. Her chest beat loudly and her eyes brimmed with tears. Breathing in deeply, she held back her petty cries and listened for Zell and Squall who eventually caught up to her.

"There goes Mr. Ego," Zell said casually with a click of his tongue. He turned his attention to Rinoa who stood with her back against them. "Hey Rinoa, what now?"

"Let's get to our post." She replied quietly, so hushed even the wind challenged her volume. Without protest, the boys shrugged their shoulders and reluctantly turned around to start towards the bridge that loomed ahead in the distance. While Squall and Zell immediately turned about and made way hastily, Rinoa stood still, bothered by Seifer's rudeness towards her. Lost in thought and desperately fighting back her forming tears she didn't here a monster that Seifer neglected to finish creep up behind her.

"Rinoa!" Zell and Squall shouted in unison.

Releasing a deafening scream of shock, Rinoa leapt and dodged the monster's first swipe. Regaining a second wind the bloodied creature crawled out the mass of its fallen comrades and maneuvered towards her.

"Attack it!" Squall shouted.

Still in a state of surprise, Rinoa kept rushing backwards until she tripped over a pile of stones. She watched in horror as the monster raised its wound-stained claw over its head.

"Rinoa!" Zell called out as the two of them rushed towards her.

Paralyzed in fear, Rinoa remembered the many times Irvine told her to come practice fighting with her, the many times she could've prepared with Squall instead of spending every moment thinking of how she could make him speak to her. _Why did they choose me to be the squad leader? I've ruined everything…_

The claw ripped deep into her leg and scrapped off a thick piece of flesh. Rinoa screamed as loud and shrilly as her lungs could manage. She set off her blaster edge to buy her a moment's reprieve. She clutched her leg not watching her for weapon to even return. Defenseless, the monster swung its claw over her stomach ripping her shirt and revealing a new made injury that oozed with crimson blood.

No longer screaming Rinoa held out her hand and shouted, "Blizzaga!" The monster's entire body froze in mid attack and turned into a glittering ice sculpture. After the body completely cocooned in hard cold ice, it cracked and shattered the entire being into a million bloody pieces.

Zell and Squall watched in awe, "Rinoa! That's really advanced magic!" The martial artist crunched over the ice shards and stepped to Rinoa offering his large strong hand. "Man, you're beat up. Got any potions on ya?"

Rinoa patted her pockets and pulled out various bottles, "Theses are all remedies," She cried painfully. Her mind felt twisted and parted, half screaming in agony while the other was beating herself up about why she was so terribly unprepared. "Do something! It hurts, IT **HURTS**!" She looked at Zell and Squall pleadingly unsure of how to surpass the pain.

Squall and Zell exchanged looks, neither of them sure how to handle Rinoa's severe injury.

"What are you three doing here?"

The Bridge Team A all looked behind them to see Instructor Trepe wearing a confused and angry frown. "It's been 45 minutes and you three aren't even near your destination, in fact, you're heading in the complete opposite direction! What were you thinking?"

"Instructor," Squall interrupted loudly, "Rinoa's hurt, badly."

Huffing irritably, Instructor Trepe climbed over the dead monsters to find Rinoa on the ground bleeding heavily. "Dear Hyne! What happened? Never mind, no time to explain, you three are completely out of bounds but right now we need to get you help!" She kneeled by Rinoa opened a small blue potion bottle, and poured it over her deep gashes. "That'll stop the bleeding— for now. From the looks of it, you don't appear to have any medicine or healing magic, do you?"

Tears dropping endlessly from her eyes, Rinoa shook her head hopeless still burning inside and out from her injuries.

"I'm very disappointed Rinoa," Quistis said quietly as she stood back up. "We'll have to adjust this slightly." She turned to Zell, "You hurry as fast as you can and find Bridge Team B. Tell them that Team A is dispatched and they'll have to cover. Join them for the remainder of the exam."

Zell saluted and hurried off without another word.

Next, Instructor Trepe turned to Squall; "You need to get Rinoa to the security station. Get her there as fast as you can, and make sure she's safe. Dr. Kadowaki should be able to patch her right up, but you have to hurry." She looked down to Rinoa who lay on the ground squirming painfully, "If her wounds get any worse she'll be in recovery for weeks. After she's safe and sound, you too join Zell and Team B." Then, with a small smile, she added, "Be careful, don't get yourself beat up as well."

Squall saluted as well and swiftly scooped Rinoa into his arms. Despite the fact that Rinoa would normally love this kind of devoted attention directly from Squall, she felt weak and dizzy from her pain. Unable to even concentrate she couldn't tell if it was Squall, Zell or even Instructor Trepe carrying her. Colors swirled together and finally Rinoa rested her head against the unknown carrier's strong chest and closed her eyes allowing her pain to finally release her of consciousness.

''''''''''''''''''''''''

When Seifer, Irvine and Baku finally reached the top of the northern plateau, the three looked as though they'd been thrown headfirst into a pool. Soaked from perspiration and monster's blood, the three sat on heaps of rocks.

"Finally! Freedom!" Baku cried hugging a pile of rumble with gratification.

"Don't get too comfortable," Irvine warned as he eyed Seifer who hadn't taken a seat yet. He scanned the mountainous trail they had just climbed for any stragglers. "Well you can sit down, leader." He continued with a small chuckle. "Do you just get a kick out of watching things die or somethin'?"

Seifer pressed the tip of his blade to the dusty ground and let the cool breeze blow through his short blonde hair. He closed his eyes now no longer aware of the heat that irritated him so thoroughly before. "It's the battle I love," He started quietly, "The adrenalin, the tension, the excitement." He smiled wryly at the exhausted cowboy, "Putting your whole soul into your weapon, it's a feeling I can't get enough of." Hearing an odd sound, Seifer gazed over Irvine and noticed Baku, who appeared asleep.

Irvine ignored the blonde's discovery, "That all? You're an adrenalin junkie?"

"Fighting isn't just fighting you trigger happy moron. It has a cause, a purpose." Seifer turned back to the trail noticing a few newcomers; "You're always defending someone when you fight. It makes every swing of your sword worth it. You wouldn't know about that though." He gestured toward the useless lump of a man laying behind Irvine, "Wake up the idiot."

With a small laugh, and an intense look of pleasure Irvine grasped a pebble from the ground a flicked right at Baku's head. The dark skinned male shook awake grabbing his forehead where the pebble left a bright red mark. "What the heck was that for! I can't afford to lose my face, that's all beautiful Instructor Trepe sees!"

"She's sees the top of your head loser, you're always sleep. Get up, we got work to do." Seifer ordered flatly.

"More? I thought we finished fighting!" Baku cried, almost whining.

Irvine ignored while Seifer verbally bashed the whiny teammate and took his station at the edge of the cliff behind a stable boulder. He scanned the foot of the trail they'd climbed earlier and aimed at a few incoming monsters. Seifer may consider him useless but at least Irvine always knew his own worth. Nothing felt more gratifying than holding back his rifle's kickback and hitting his target.

The monster he'd aimed at keeled over and laid dead as Seifer had reached it. A thin smile touched Irvine's lips as he viewed further off passed where Seifer and Baku patrolled.

_"It has a cause, a purpose…_ _You're always defending someone when you fight. It makes every swing of your sword worth it. You wouldn't know about that though." _

As Irvine pulled the trigger again, Seifer's surprisingly wise words echoed through his head. _Defending someone huh? Purpose…_ Naturally, his mind drifted towards Selphie. His gun kept shooting, as being a sniper barely took any attention anymore. He recollected the night he took Selphie away from Trabia, the horrid condition he'd found her in. How much happier would he be if he knew he could've protected her from that? When he saw Selphie's injury from her random outing, he could've used his weapon and skills to help her.

His techniques at fetching women, his amazing accuracy with gunmanship, it seemed useless when he couldn't do anything for someone he truly cared for. Irvine never wanted to admit this, but Seifer was right.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Rinoa opened her eyes slowly adjusting to the light. She lifted her head weakly and looked about; she appeared to be lying on a cot outside. The wind blew her hair into her eyes, too tired to push them aside she returned her head back down.

"How're you feeling?"

Without a doubt, delirious or not, Rinoa raised her head sure to see Squall sitting nearby. "Dr. Kadowaki said you'll be just fine. She recommends you rest for a few hours though." He twisted his lips almost giving her a little smile.

"Squall, you're here?" She asked meekly.

"My order was to make sure you're safe and sound. A few monsters have come around here, and since everyone is injured, you weren't exactly secure. I thought it was best I stayed until you came to." He replied, his eyes soft, although no smile.

"Oh, I see." She sat up straight and scanned her body for the injuries she expected to still had. Her clothes were badly ripped but all that remained of her battle was a long thin line up her leg. "It's all gone!" She cried in surprise.

"Dr. Kadowaki did it, she said you got here just in time. Otherwise," Squall stopped and ran his finger over his face, "you could have ended up with this."

Rinoa smiled gratefully realizing how her current well-being completely resided in Squall's hand's earlier. She laid back down playing back her every idiotic event that led up to her being on a cot, weak from a battle she barely fought. "I really messed things up, didn't I? I'm sorry… I'm going to fail for sure." Even Rinoa knew asking for Squall's sympathy was a shot in the dark, however she silenced still expecting him to say something in return.

"Your failure is your own." Squall started. His words tore at Rinoa deeply as she began regretting saying anything. To her surprise Squall continued to a more positive approach, "But that also means your success is your own too. It doesn't matter if you fail, because the minute you succeed," He walked off a few feet facing the dull scenery, "you forget how many times you fell." He turned back around, "You got the right moves, stop depending on others and do it yourself."

Speechless, Rinoa stared wide eyed at Squall her mouth agape. "Squall—that was so sweet. I don't know what to say."

He shrugged flatly, "Don't say anything. I was just telling you the reality of it." He observed the area with a few other cots sprawled about, some with students in it, some empty. "I think you're okay now. I guess you can probably handle it if a monster shows up, I should head to the bridge."

"No wait!" Rinoa reached over her cot and grasped Squall's arm, "Please don't leave me."

Still not exactly smiling, Squall's eyes softened as he nodded. Although Rinoa wasn't sure if keeping him here would jeopardize his score or not, she was just happy he stayed.

_One's first love is always perfect until one meets one's second love._

_-__Elizabeth Aston_


	31. Chapter 30

_"Kanjin na koto ga nottenai"_  
_("The important things are not printed there")_

_Beautiful World  
__Chapter Thirty_

Selphie paced impatiently through the front gates Balamb Garden. After her dance lesson, there was little to do for the rest of the day. Instructor Trepe went off for the exam, as well as Irvine, Rinoa, Zell, and Nida, the only people she actually knew. Matron appeared leg deep in work and didn't have another moment to spare on Selphie. Grateful for at least her dance lesson, Selphie practice the moves with her invisible dance partner for hours. Afterwards she tried reading _The Legend of Gilgamesh_, but her reading level still poor, it proved tiresome after a bit.

She even considered going out and training in either the fields or the training center, but a part of her felt too hesitant without Irvine or Instructor Trepe with her. After all the day's activities, she found herself here in the front of Garden waiting for her friends to return. The day was young and there was no promise of an early return, but according to Matron all SeeD exams have to end on that day whether their mission is complete or not.

Using her hand as a visor, she shaded her eyes looking to the long winding road that swiveled through the luscious green fields of Balamb to the town. Far down, she could make out a string of cars driving steadily up to the Garden. Ecstatic, Selphie jumped up and down nonstop until the cars stopped before her.

Groups of dirtied, wounded and odorous students exited all looking tired. Some wore accomplished smiles while others looked at their feet ashamed. Selphie scanned the crowds carefully until she finally came across the tall lanky figure of her favorite cowboy. "Irvy!" She called loudly jumping in place while waving her arms madly over her head.

Irvine, hearing her, pushed through the small crowd towards his little cheerleader. Without any thought to why Irvine's uniform was damp, foul smelling or even off colored, Selphie leapt into Irvine's arms hugging him tightly. "You're back! Yeay! How was it it? Tell me, tell me, tell me!"

Incredibly happy to see Selphie, Irvine took off his black cowboy hat and placed it on his short friend. "It was hard a'right!" He shined his beautiful smile.

"Selphie!"

Irvine and Selphie turned around to see Nida approaching them. Unlike Irvine, Nida seemed much more kept, his uniform only slightly sullied. Although that proved nothing, Irvine squinted his eyes smiling to himself as though Nida's clean look deemed he'd done terribly in the exam. Selphie looked back to Irvine, wincing a bit, "Sorry Irvy I'll catch up with you later." Without another word, she walked off towards Nida leaving Irvine in a state of awe.

Unfortunately, for Irvine, he didn't have the luxury of sitting in self pity for long since Zell came a few moments later to interrupt his moments of silence. He landed a massive hand on his shoulder, "Hey man."

Irvine blinked and looked to his side seeing the blazing blonde haired Zell grinning brightly at him. "Oh, hey Zell. I was just saying hello to Selphie and uh, what's his name."

"Nida?" Zell finished, "He was on my team— eh sorta. He's a pretty good fighter, the only other decent fighter in our squad, at least."

Not thrilled with what he heard, Irvine looked to Zell and noticed he too appeared rather clean. Unfortunately Irvine comprehended that an unsoiled uniform meant little now. "You guys didn't get much action, did ya?" He asked flatly.

"Eh not really, spent most the mission cleaning up Rinoa's mess." Zell took in a whiff of air, coughing as he registered Irvine's odor. "Man you sure got your money's worth out there. You reek!"

Irvine smoothed his hair, realizing he'd given Selphie his hat, "Yeah that's what I get for being on Seifer's squad. A freakin' slave driver I tell ya. So what'd Rinoa do?"

Also running his hand through his hair, Zell whistled, "Man I do not envy you! Oh Rinoa, man she got hurt real bad. She had us go through this wild goos-" The tattooed blonde spun his head side to side, but Irvine had already raced off.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Immediately upon arrival, Squall escorted Rinoa along with all the other wounded participants to the infirmary for a final check up. There were only two others sitting in the small infirmary beds awaiting the plump doctor, but Rinoa stood up on her feet impatient to leave.

Rinoa looked at Squall, who stood quietly beside her. He'd spoken little since she requested him to stay with her back during the mission. She didn't mind of course, his presence was enough to make her feel safe and at ease. To her luck, Dr. Kadowaki ordered Squall to continue his watch over the wounded students until arriving to Balamb. Now he'd completed all he'd been order to do and nothing stood between him and leaving— and yet here he was.

"You know, your orders don't say you have to stay any longer." Rinoa whispered softly.

"You want me to go?" Squall asked emotionlessly.

"No, no! I just don't want to keep you here against your will, is all." She sputtered back nervously.

Before either of them could say anything else, a loud, panting cowboy rushed in and threw his arms around Rinoa. "Rinoa! I heard you were hurt! What happened?"

Rinoa held her breath trying desperately not to take in Irvine's overwhelming stench. "Irvine—let—me—go." She uttered slowly. Realizing he was in some way choking Rinoa, Irvine released her and stepped back a few feet to get a good look at her. Other than her uniform shirt being ripped revealing her light skinned middle, nothing appeared off about her.

"I thought you got hurt— I even told Seifer and all. What happened?" Irvine blinked confused.

"Thanks to Squall here, Dr. Kadowaki was able to fix me up with barely anything to show for it." Rinoa posed her thin scar on her leg with a small laugh. Sharing in the laugh Irvine turned to Squall and bowed his head gratefully.

A few moments later, Seifer walked into the infirmary, ignoring Squall and Irvine he swept up to Rinoa. "Rinoa! I'm so sorry I shooed you away like that, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fi—"

Before Rinoa had much of a chance to answer, Seifer pulled her in for a long hard kiss. Behind them, Irvine and Squall exchanged disgusted glances. Unfortunately for Rinoa, Seifer shared the same putrid aroma of perspiration, and monster residue as Irvine. Although appreciative for the attention, she felt faint from trying to hold her breath the entire kiss. After Seifer pulled away, he turned darkly to Squall as though wanting to know why he was there.

"Squall's job was to take care of me." Rinoa added in a somewhat bitter tone as she recalled why she even was in her current mess.

Seifer and Squall met eyes both sober and fierce. Without even facing Rinoa again Seifer started, "Come on Rinoa, let's go hear the exam results."

"I have to wait for Dr. Kadowaki," Rinoa started. Before she even finished her sentence, Seifer grasped her wrist and dragged her out of the infirmary muttering, "You're fine."

''''''''''''''''''''''

"Seifer!" Rinoa shrieked yanking her hand away from him. "Seifer stop it! What do you think you're doing?" With a final pull, she freed herself from her boyfriend's strong hold. Seifer, no longer in possession of Rinoa turned around, his brow furled giving his entire face the look of frustration.

"Listen, I'm sorry. I heard what happened and I got worried." He started calmly despite the look on his face. "I don't know why we're fighting and I don't care. I just know you wouldn't have been hurt if I had just listened to you instead of telling you to buzz off over and over again."

First devoted attention from Squall, and now Rinoa received a lovely apology from Seifer; if she magically passed the exam too, today would count as the perfect day. She smiled and gave Seifer a small hug, not holding on too long. "It's alright Seifer, I know I should've tried talking to you at a better time or place. Let's just drop it, we've both been silly."

Seifer nodded as Rinoa gently took his hand. The two walked quietly down the hall.

''''''''''''''''''''''''

Selphie pressed herself against the wall as she listened to Nida banter on and on about his exciting day on the bridge. In all honesty, Selphie did find whatever Nida had to say quite interesting but for a reason beyond her understanding she didn't want to listen to him. While Nida's lips moved, Selphie simply fiddled the ends of Irvine's hat that she constantly lifted off her head, and replaced.

"After we exterminated that group of monsters, we got a message to head back to the docks, so here we are!" Nida beamed, obviously proud of whatever he'd said. "I'm awfully nervous, I don't know if I did well enough to pass."

"You mean you might not go to the ball?" Selphie squeaked, her voice almost breaking.

Nida smiled, "Of course I'm going to the ball. I'm still apart of the Student Festival Committee. Although, I'd much rather prefer it be because I'm a SeeD."

Relieved, Selphie slid against the wall until she landed sitting on the floor. The hallways around them slowly filled up with the same students who'd come from the slew of cars Selphie had waited on earlier. Further down, Selphie spotted familiar faces like Rinoa, her boyfriend, Zell, the guy who was looking for his ring, and Irvine. Excited to see them, and even more so, anxious to go hear how they did, Nida kept talking keeping Selphie somewhat obligated to stay. She remembered back in Trabia, some clients paid her to just sit in front of them and listen. Without a doubt, it proved to be the easiest money made, but Selphie never understood it. She simply learned when men are talking, they don't like being interrupted or walked away from.

The whole hallway came to a hush when a heavily robed man entered. He stood in the middle of the pupils who's eyes were glued to his every sway of his robe. Standing still for a moment, the robe man observed the many students tensely watching him. He pulled a slip of paper and cleared his throat. "Dintch, Zell Dintch."

"OH YEAH!" Zell leapt into the air, landed with a loud thump and flipped backwards until he'd exited the hall. Despite his colorful departure, the remainder of the students continued to watch the Garden faculty's hooded head peer over the paper intensely.

"Loire, Squall Loire." He stated loudly. Seifer's face tightened as he watched Squall calmly pass him and leave the scene. He didn't notice Rinoa who smiled brightly and waved as Squall approached and eventually passed them.

"Donner, Nida Donner." He continued not allowing Squall the chance at a victory dance akin to Zell's. Nida beamed and grabbed Selphie tightly, spinning her in sheer excitement. Irvine watched him darkly, his entire body shaking with envy. At that very moment, the cowboy could have easily shot him, buried him, and made a fake alibi without a single drop of remorse. After releasing Selphie, Nida joined the other two outside of the corridor.

"Almasy, Seifer Almasy. Kinneas, Irvine Kinneas. That is all." Immediately, Irvine stomped out haughtily excited to meet up with Nida in the next hall. Seifer took a kiss from Rinoa and pushed the sniper out of his hurrying to the elevator with the rest of them. Without waiting to watch the rest of the students cry out in utter failure, the faculty swept his robes and followed the newly appointed SeeDs out of the corridor into the elevator.

Selphie gazed over the remaining students who pitifully looked at the ground, defeated and upset. They paced, no one leaving, just wandering about. Selphie took the opportunity to catch up with Rinoa who still lingered. She rested kneeled in a corner alone and grinned politely as she noticed Selphie coming along towards her. "Rinoa!" Selphie cried out cheerily.

The raven headed student lifted her head from her knees and continued to smile weakly. As Selphie sat down by her, she bit her lips trying to hold back her disappointed tears. Surely, she felt happy for her friends who all passed, but a pit in her chest pounded in utter failure. She pressed her cheek to her knee letting her face Selphie who eyed her curiously and cutely, like a kitten trying to figure out how to pass a closed door. Selphie's wondering eyes brought Rinoa a small chuckle.

"So? Are you going to tell me how you did?" Selphie asked anxiously.

Rinoa flopped her head back on her knees and sighed loudly, "Can't you see for yourself? I failed!"

"You mean that's it? I thought they were coming out later or something—" Innocent Selphie thought aloud.

"I failed, and I deserved it. I was being stupid on the battlefield. Even though I knew I was going to fail, it just hurts seeing it!" Rinoa hugged her legs tightly and buried her face into her lap. "I'm a failure!"

Selphie's eyes widened as she watched Rinoa, along with nearly every other student in the hall weep mourning their loss. "Rinoa," She started in a slightly panicked voice, acknowledging she wasn't good with handling distressed people, "can't you take the exam again?"

"Not for another year and what if I fail it again? I'll leave Garden a loser, a stupid incompetent loser!" Rinoa continue to moan.

A part of Selphie wanted to ask what incompetent meant, and the other wanted to runaway until Rinoa returned to calm behavior. In the end, Selphie didn't follow either of her first intuitions and gently patted Rinoa, and eventually hugged her while she continued to sob about how she'd never make it. After babbling about impossible it seemed her cries became slightly positive until she'd stopped weeping and had a new resolve to pass.

"… Yeah, I'll show him! I'm not going to let him think I'm a nothing!" Granted, Selphie had absolutely no idea what Rinoa was talking about. Proud, Rinoa rose to her feet and wiped her face as the passing students returned into the hall. The remaining students began to clap, their applause feeble due to the broken spirits that summoned it.

Selphie too came to her feet and began clapping as the gentlemen walked down the hall proudly accepting their applause from their fellow students, teachers, and in Selphie's case, friends.

Irvine spotted Rinoa and Selphie beside each other and raced over before Nida or Seifer discovered them. He threw his long arms out and squeezed the two of them together. To Irvine's approval, Nida and Seifer didn't join them at all. Nida took a few bows before his classmates and then dismissed himself. He didn't even see where Seifer zipped off too. However, Irvine paid little mind to this and spoke excitedly to his good friends.

'''''''''''''''''

While Irvine missed him, Seifer took a few congratulatory pats from students whom he normally victimized as head of the Student Disciplinary Committee. After brushing off the forged flattery, he headed straight to Instructor Trepe's classroom.

As he expected, she was there. Unlike her normal routine in which she sat behind her desk grading papers, she paced the classroom letting her hands glide over the study panels, gently and gingerly letting each of her long fingers stroke the smooth surfaces. Seifer watched for a while as he examined her smile that she wore the entire time. She paused at a certain study panel that Seifer knew all too well belonged to Squall. For several minutes, she stood there, her hands placed still, her back to Seifer.

For a moment, Seifer thought he even heard a sniffle. He attempted to move backwards, however Instructor Trepe finally noticed the sound and spun about to see her pupil in the corner of the room. "Seifer!" She greeted happily. She trotted through the aisle of panels and came directly in front of him, "Congratulations!"

Seifer smirked haughtily, but before he could say anything, Instructor Trepe began to speak again. "It's a good thing we practiced dancing yesterday then. Don't you dare try skipping the ball, I intend on seeing perform on the dance floor."

Again, Seifer nodded letting Instructor Trepe acknowledge he was listening. "Instructor, what were you just doing?" He said finally before she spoke again.

Quistis blinked and turned back to the rows of study panels, "Oh," she started with an embarrassed chuckle. She pushed back a long thick lock of her golden hair and turned back to the study panels. "I'm just— I'm just proud of my students. That's all."

"Proud of Pretty Boy?" Seifer added with a snort.

"Pardon? Well yes, I'm proud of Squall. I'm just as proud of you though." Instructor Trepe rested a hand on Seifer's broad shoulder and smiled. "Why don't you go get refreshed for the ball tonight, remember to save me a dance."

'''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine trotted along happily arm in arm with Rinoa on one side and Selphie on the other. The chain of them paraded down the hall as Irvine and Selphie took turns saying supportive things to their downtrodden Rinoa.

"You're still going to the ball, and now you can wear that really pretty dress!" Squeaked Selphie, most of her cheerful banter ran around the lines of the Inauguration Ball. Every time she uttered another word about the ball, Irvine felt a weigh of tension grow heavier in his gut. "And plus, now you'll have a reason to go next year too! You won't be able to wear that pretty gown but, but you can make Seifer dress up!"

The cowboy rolled his eyes still pondering about his own date for the night. Every once and awhile Selphie mentioned how excited she is, or lovely she'll look. For each new comment to conversation, Irvine imagined a new way of eliminating Nida from the picture. Never had he felt such distaste towards any person.

After awhile, Irvine left the conversation completely in Selphie's hands, who somehow had managed to steer Rinoa out of her pity party back to the sunshine and suspense of the night ahead. Although Rinoa now chirped to a happier tune, Irvine remained irritable, despite him hiding it well. He listened partially as the girls on either side of him continued to inflate their joys about the thrilling event that was to take place. Meanwhile a familiar slender figure came into view a bit further down the hall. Both Rinoa and Selphie seemed too preoccupied in their conversation to even comment when Irvine loosely released himself of their friendly bind.

Behind him, the girls migrated to a bench and continued to chat rapidly about their plans. Irvine continued steadily down the hall until the figure became more full in his eyes. A long womanly body topped with a sprawling swathe of brown curls came into focus. As soon as Irvine heard the notorious clicking sound of her heels, he knew it was none other than Scarlet. He quickened his pace, getting far enough away from Selphie and Rinoa so that they wouldn't really be able to make out what he was doing and more importantly, who with.

"Scarlet!" He called out charismatically.

Slitting her eyes open, Scarlet tossed her head and pouted her full lip out before replying. "Oh look who it is, Mr. Commitophob." She uttered in deceivingly upsetting voice.

"Heh, you're not one to talk pretty thing." Irvine said with a laugh, "I got news for you. Guess who you're going to be rocking with in a SeeD's dorm?"

Scarlet closed her eyes and reopened them so slowly that her lashes brushed against her flawless face, "I have nothing to discuss with you after hours darling." She replied, ready to turn away.

"Scarlet," Irvine purred as he took her into his arms, "it's my new room. Don't you want to help me break it in?"

Blinking in surprise, Scarlet parted her lips slowly, "Why Irvine Kinneas! You sneaky sniper, are you a SeeD?"

"I am," Irvine tipped his hat while shining his famous smile, "and I'd be happy if you'd come with me to the ball tonight and be the envy of everyone there." Without a word, Scarlet hugged him tightly running her hands gingerly around his back. Although Irvine knew full heartedly the invitation to the ball certainly seemed like an invitation to a full relationship as Scarlet asked for, he couldn't want something less. However, the bitterness of Nida taking Selphie to the ball seemed like just the push to do yet another stupid action.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Hours later after the commotion and excitement of the SeeD exam results, the time of the Inauguration Ball finally drew close.

Selphie sat on her bed only clothed in towel fresh from a shower. Her wet brown hair adhered to her moist neck as she laid her legs straight before her. Water from her soaked hair dripped and ran the length of her arm before falling onto her leg. Selphie breathed in deeply as she carefully revealed her scarred thigh from under the towel.

Irvine loyally took her to see Dr. Kadowaki regularly and to her happiness, the scar's appearance became more bearable. It'd taken the shade of a deep maroon and bled very little. The skin around it still felt inflamed and sensitive making changing and showering a bit of a challenge.

Gingerly, Selphie led a finger around the reddened edges examining its size. Despite its treatment, the scar remained as long as it was the first day she discovered it in Balamb's hotel. With a small sigh, Selphie pulled out some gauze that Dr. Kadowaki supplied her and layered it carefully over her thigh. She secured it in place and lifted her leg while wounding her leg with a wrap. After she felt successful in hiding her scar, she turned behind to see her ball gown hanging off her closet door.

It glimmered like diamonds in the light. Selphie felt lost in its shimmers as it proved the most beautiful garment she'd ever seen. She stepped towards it, hesitant to pull it from its hangar. After a few moments of caution and clothes shuffling, Selphie twirled around in the small free space of her room watching the folds of her dress spin about her.

"Selphie!" Rinoa called as she entered the room.

Selphie halted her spinning immediately as she watched Rinoa, her dress of light flowing material stayed in the air a few moments after she'd stopped moving. From her head to her toe, Rinoa looked nothing short of an angel to Selphie. Upon her feet were white heels that hugged her like heeled ballet slippers and a lace ribbon wrapped gently over her ankles. Her cream colored legs were visible under her short pearl colored dress, made from silk and embraced her frame. Opaque veil covered her shoulders and glittering crystal earrings dangled from her ears. She pinned her hair in an intricate bun letting a lock of hair frame her face. All Selphie could manage was stare in wonder.

"Come on! We gotta get you ready!" She squealed excitedly grabbing a hair dryer in one hand, and hairbrush in the other.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine tapped his foot irritably against the smooth marble floors. Scarlet, linked in arms with him, stood flirtatiously in her tight, maroon, black fur lined tube dress. She too appeared somewhat bored, despite being with a handsome SeeD. Irvine, to her dislike, seemed quite occupied.

"Irvine!" She finally snapped.

Blinking rapidly, Irvine turned his head, making the chains linked across his SeeD uniform jingle as he did. "Yeah, you say something?" He mumbled unconcerned with Scarlet's apparent frustration. Several girls had eyed him; several men had eyed her— neither, which fazed him in the least bit.

"I'm so bored! I thought this would be fun!" Scarlet hissed bitterly.

"Well what do you want me to do?" Replied the cowboy leaning back again.

"Go get me something to drink at least." She continued indignantly.

Not in the mood to argue, Irvine pushed himself to his feet. He released his associated arm from Scarlet and made his way through the hall to the beverage table. His eyes lingered on the decorations that seemed familiar to him, ones he worked on with Selphie and the rest of the Student Festival Committee. A smile came to his face as he passed an ornate ice sculpture to the trays of champagne. He gently lifted two between his fingers as he gazed over to the entrance stairwell at the north end of the hall.

Two couples glided down the stairs, one was Seifer and Rinoa, and the other was Nida and Selphie. Irvine paid little attention to the first couple and had his eyes locked on Selphie who descended in a dress of platinum starting from her shoulders and belling out to her ankles. Somehow, she managed to straighten her hair and pin back her shorter locks with metallic clips. With every step, the silky material of her gown formed the lower of her leg and fanned out like a wave of a mercury ocean. Her tiny feet pattered quietly in their flat silver slippers.

Irvine's eyes remained fastened onto the tiny frame holding on Nida's arm. Without thinking twice, champagne still between his fingers, the cowboy rustled passed the sparsely filled dance floor straight to Selphie and her date. Nida smiled and waved, but Irvine just shoved his champagne at his free hand and beamed at Selphie.

"Hey, wow you look amazing." He blurted.

Nida laughed offering one of the champagne glasses to Selphie. "Indeed, she looks like a star!"

Selphie blushed as she twiddled her fingers along the glass's stem. "I think you guys look great too. Those uniforms are really cool!" Irvine scarcely noticed he was wearing something new and impressive, he gazed down at his attire. The SeeD uniform did look striking with its broad shoulders. The chest inlaid with green, red and blue intricate designs against black cloth, and two short chains draped near the shoulders.

"Thanks." Irvine replied finally locking gazes with Selphie. The two stood in silence for a few moments lost in each other's eyes. Eventually their interlude broke by Scarlet who interrupted them loudly.

"There you are Irvine!" Scarlet called as she grasped his arm back around hers.

"Well leave it to Irvine Kinneas to bring a date to shame us all!" Nida exclaimed with a smile. He shook Scarlet's hand politely and returned his arm to interlace it with Selphie's.

Scarlet leaned against Irvine trying to pull his attention, "Irvine, where's our drinks?" She spoke quietly in attempts to sound whiny.

Immediately Nida reached out his hand still holding the untouched champagne Irvine had given him, "Please take mine, I'll get myself another."

"What a gentleman!" Scarlet squealed delighted for some attention. "Now come on Irvine, let's have a dance." She yanked at his arm and pouted her red lips.

"Right, we'll leave you two then." Nida nodded and led Selphie away.

As Irvine watched the two walk away disheartened, Scarlet tugged at his sleeve. He turned to her, eyes squinted. "Irvine, I want to dance." His date looked at him intensely irritated. While Irvine knew he didn't want Scarlet to storm off angrily in the middle of the ball, he had no desire to dance with her or even spend another minute with her while Selphie was present in the room. He groaned mentally and gently led Scarlet to the dance floor.

Scarlet smiled thinly in a vixen like manner, pleased to get her way. She held herself close to Irvine as they began to dance across the gleaming marble floor under the open skylight. Seducing as always, Scarlet pressed herself to her partner letting her hips move to the music as Irvine led. Dancing was an easy way to woman's heart, thus Irvine made it a priority to perfect this art. He maneuvered quickly, and Scarlet followed in rhythm clicking her stilettos noisily. To finish the dance, Irvine dipped Scarlet's slender body. Her long curls hovered over the floor as Scarlet bent one leg, still grinning with a sense of accomplishment; she gazed at Irvine who to her surprise had his attention spent elsewhere! Frustrated, Scarlet stood straight and ripped herself from Irvine's arms.

"Scarlet!" Irvine moaned, "Come on, don't be like that!" He followed her, hanging his head aggravated. The two of them ended at a table where Scarlet sat herself down with a huff. She snatched another glass of champagne from a passerby and drank it in a full gulp. "That can't be good for ya," Irvine started hesitantly.

She slammed the glass down on the table and threw a dirty look at Irvine. "I can't believe I came to this with you!" She hissed loudly. With a small shrug, Irvine took a seat and smiled weakly. Scarlet ignored him and continued to rant. "I'm humiliated! My own date is too busy ignoring me and I'm standing around like an idiot when I could be with anyone I wanted, and I turned down so many guys for you!"

"Someone se asked you out?" Irvine responded immediately.  
Almost furious, Scarlet snapped, "Of course! Who do you think I am?"

"Okay, okay, I gotcha! Listen, let me just talk to a few of my friends and then it'll be all about you. It's my SeeD ball though; shouldn't I have some fun too?"

"I thought your fun begins when the lights go down in your new room."

"Yeah, yeah we'll have our fun then. I'll be back in a few!" Irvine leapt to his feet not awaiting Scarlet's approval.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''

Seifer gazed bored at the crowd of people sitting at the same table as he. Rinoa knew everyone, hence why they assumed to sit near her. Directly beside Rinoa sat Selphie and her date, then across the table was that annoying chicken wuss with some girl Seifer barely recognized. He tapped loudly against his champagne glass, unimpressed. Stronger liquor much better suited him.

Rinoa, Selphie, and whomever Chicken wuss brought spoke excitedly about how beautiful the ball turned out, and mentioned something about a committee. The only committee that ever concerned Seifer was his very own Disciplinary Committee. Had Fujin and Rajin been allowed to come, he'd be much more entertained.

Seifer leaned back in his chair and watched the rest of the ball carry on around him. Veteran SeeDs, faculty, Headmasters, and random associates of Garden lingered about, talking, drinking, and dancing. His eyes loomed about the hall until he stopped on a certain figure speaking to Headmaster Cid and his wife.

She wore a sleek black dress with a slit on other side revealing her slender legs and tall polished black heels making her legs look even sleeker. Her golden hair shined as it laid long and straight down her back. Seifer watched her carefully as he had suspicion on who it was already, as she turned around his theory was confirmed.

"I'll be back, I see Instructor Trepe, I'm going to say hi." Seifer said patting Rinoa's shoulder. Not paying much attention, Rinoa brushed him off continuing her conversation.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''

"So how does it feel to have the highest success rate in of the all the instructors?" Headmaster Cid asked beaming proudly.

Quistis laughed gracefully into the back of her hand as the other arm wrapped around her middle. She blushed as Headmaster and Headmistress Kramer had spent the greater of ten minutes praising her about having two of her students pass the exam. "I wish I could take all the credit myself, but those two were very competitive. If only one made it, the other would make sure he' be dead the next hour!" The three of them laughed heartily.

"I certainly am glad your busy workload has not hindered you in any way, you've taken on your own class, sessions with Mr. Almasy and Selphie. Quistis you are without a doubt the dream instructor!" Edea smiled genuinely causing Quistis to blush again.

Although Quistis felt she could spend the entire night letting the heads of Garden compliment her every action, and quite possibly would have had Seifer not appeared at that very moment to interrupt their conversation. "Well look who it is, it's one of my star pupils." She greeted.

"Congratulations Seifer, we're very proud. It's as they say, third time's the charm." Headmaster Cid chortled with a small wink.

"Second." Seifer spat with a smirk and thinned eyes. He turned his attention away from the two Headmasters and gazed at his instructor. She looked nothing like she did in class. Her hair lay straight, shining like pure gold. The black dress she wore encased her slender and feminine frame with a fantastic touch of revealing the back of her calves. "I hate to leave you all, but I believe I promised my instructor a dance."

"Seifer, I'm surprised. I was sure you'd be ducking all night to avoid that!" Instructor Trepe teased patting his broad shoulder. "Well then, shall we?" She held her long bare arm out to Seifer who felt mentally hesitant to take it. Before he knew it, he'd locked arms with her and steadily found himself moving towards the center dance floor.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine spotted Selphie talking happily beside Rinoa. He noticed Nida beside her, unoccupied lacking any entertainment. His boredom pleased Irvine thoroughly, as a selfish grin came upon his lips. "My ladies," He greeted with a small bow as he approached Rinoa and Selphie. The two girls bowed their heads politely, Rinoa beaming at Irvine's SeeD look. As the small moment of formality passed between them, Irvine held out his arm to Selphie, "May I have this dance?"

Selphie looked to Rinoa, who smiled in response. Not realizing she ought to ask Nida for permission as well, she happily clasped her small hand in Irvine's letting him whisk her off her chair to the shining ballroom already filling up with dancers.

Rinoa gazed dreamily at Irvine and his dance partner, completely ignoring the flabbergasted Nida who watched with his mouth wide open. She sighed slightly disappointed Seifer hadn't asked her to dance yet. Before another thought crossed her mind, she noticed Seifer already stood on the dance floor! She eyed his partner carefully finally making her out to be an exquisitely dressed Instructor Trepe. _Well, I guess I can understand that— he probably owes his success to her. Hyne knows I haven't been much help. Not that I feel guilty, he's the reason __**I**__ failed after all. _

Whatever Rinoa said to herself to cope with the fact she wore a glittering white dress versus a sturdy SeeD uniform, it didn't change the fact she wanted to dance as well. She scanned the table overlooking Nida and saw that even Zell had taken his date to the floor already. With a small huff, she raised herself from her seat and walked about the banquet hall.

Also appearing bored was none other than Squall. He stood against a pillar, lonesome in the back end of the hall. Excited to see Squall in his proud uniform, Rinoa rushed up to him quickly.

"Hey, you're the best looking guy here." She chuckled teasingly as Squall rolled his eyes in response. Rinoa clasped her hands together, "Oh don't be like that, all my friends are dancing and I don't have a partner. Please come with me?"

Squall shook his head stubbornly, "I don't dance."

"You don't dance, or you can't?" Rinoa questioned raising an eyebrow.  
"I don't dance, I haven't since I lived in Esthar."

Rinoa clapped thrilled, "Oh good you can dance!" Without another word she grabbed Squall's arm and yanked towards her, "Come on I can't be alone on the dance floor."

"I don't dance!" Squall continued to snap.  
"Don't worry, I'll help you!"

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Although Selphie practiced the exact routine all day, her heart raced and beat thunderously in her ears as Irvine and her took their positions. He gently rested one hand around her waist, and clasped her hand with the other. His eyes were soft and relaxed while she stared at him, almost fearful.

"I-I'm not very good at this," She muttered with a small chuckle.

A thin handsome smile spread across Irvine's striking face as he knelt his head closer to hers. His lips came beside her ear as he whispered, "You're in good hands then."

His warmth breath upon her skin sent exhilarating vibrations throughout her whole body. Almost lost for breath and words, her apprehensive facial expression melted, as she felt lost in Irvine's eyes, his face, his entire being. Selphie never felt so captivated, to the point she didn't notice they started dancing. Her feet moved in rhythm and coordination with Irvine's but her eyes remained locked on him.

When Irvine spun her out, her concentration broke as she began stumbling over her own feet and her partner's. To this, Irvine only laughed continuing to gracefully lead them as they flew from corner to corner on the dance floor. Despite the fact that Selphie now knew she was dancing, the anxiety still pumped through her veins, as she felt entranced in a stressed way. How could she explain this feeling, if not even to herself? She tried to vocalize something until Irvine lifted her high in the air, frightened and shocked as Headmaster Cid never performed this part, she dug her fingers into Irvine's thick shoulder pads. The rest of the dancers had thrown their arms up graceful as bird in flight while she remained paralyzed in fear of falling on the hard marble floor.

Irvine brought her back to her feet and slowly dipped her; they remained in that position for more than a few moments. Selphie even heard the rest of the crowd applauding signifying the dance's finish, yet she still lay suspended in Irvine's arms oblique from the floor.

Her breath finally softened but her heart rate only multiplied. She wanted to say something to him, anything. Before she knew it, Irvine had put her back on her feet and someone else had tapped on her shoulder.

"May I cut in?" Nida asked gently.

Selphie slowly turned around to Nida, and as she did, her face fell. Noticing her obvious discontent, Nida forced a polite smile still offering his hand. Slightly resisting, Selphie let go of her cowboy and caught a glance of his face, which looked pass Selphie to Nida with a dark glare. "Sure thing," She finally said returning her hand to her date's walking off.

Angrier than he'd felt in awhile, Irvine gritted his teeth scanning the banquet hall for something to quickly get his frustration out on. Across a few more exiting couples, Irvine observed the elegantly doused in white Rinoa in the arm's of the crown of her boyfriend's envy, Squall. The two of them gazed at the night sky through the glass ceiling with grins upon their faces. They then met eyes, spoke some and finally released each other.

Irvine had half a mind to confront Rinoa about what in Hyne's name she was doing dancing with Squall, but it seemed she had something to speak to him since she walked towards him hastily grabbing him into dancing position as the music began the next march.

"Where's your date Irvine?" She asked in a voice too sweet to be sincere.  
"I could ask you the same thing," Irvine replied with a snicker.  
"I saw you with Scarlet earlier, despite how that disgusts me I know you're all over Nida's date. That's just mean Irvine."

"Ya care more about Nida than me?"

"It had nothing to do with Nida, you know that. Let Selphie have her night, I thought you were just asking her to a friendly dance but you two might as well been making out in the middle of everybody!" Rinoa snorted with a sarcastic laugh.

"Scarlet might be my date, but she's not my girlfriend. You can't say the same thing about your situation, Rin. Did Seifer steal a glance at that longing look you and Squall shared?" Argued Irvine in a tone much more coldly than his normal voice.

Rinoa ripped her hands away from Irvine and stepped back several feet. She furled her brows closely, her entire face viciously angry. "Fine! You play with your toys and I'll play with mine, but don't come crying to me when you break yours!"

Luckily, for the both of them, the music played too loud for anyone to make much of what they said, but several couples of dancers noticed he'd been abandoned in the middle. Irvine rubbed the back of his neck viewing the sets as they twirled about. Amongst them was Nida and Selphie. They moved swiftly together and much to Irvine's surprise, Selphie actually smiled. Their entire dance Selphie watched him almost stoically, and yet with Nida she seemed so much happier. Somewhat hurt and offended Irvine stomped to beverages table, slid as many glasses of champagne between his fingers as he could manage, and returned back to his table with Scarlet.

'''''''''''''''''''''''

After their dance, Quistis had excused herself mentioning she had something to attend. Seifer however knew Quistis wouldn't plan something on the night of the ball since she sounded excited about it earlier in the week. After concluding that, Seifer felt it was his right to sneak up and find out what she was doing. He'd followed Instructor Trepe all the way to a balcony in the far corner of the banquet hall, a SeeD already stood there waiting there his back turned to Seifer.

"I haven't the chance to properly congratulate you." Instructor Trepe started kindly.

Seifer pressed his back to the side of the entrance holding his breath to keep his silence. He waited for the male to respond, realizing that it was obviously one of the passing candidates. While Seifer knew there were several options, his gut told him already who stood on the balcony with Instructor Trepe.

"I thought you didn't dance, but you danced magnificently." She continued in her coddling voice. She stayed quiet letting a few moments of silent pass between them before speaking again. "Well I just wanted to say, now that you're a SeeD we won't see much of each other anymore. You'll be leaving for missions. I think a proper goodbye is in order."

Another moment of silence passed before Squall spoke. "Goodbye." He said flatly.

Quistis laughed gently and responded, "So frank with you. I had something else in mind. Do you remember that place I took you to when I told you you'd passed your written exam?" She paused waiting for some acknowledgement before continuing, "Well let's say you and I go there one more time?"

"Whatever— if you want. I don't see the point." Squall droned bored.

"I thought you wouldn't. Do it as a favor for me, if not a favor an order. It'll the last order from your instructor."

"…"  
"Please Squall?"

"Well, I'll be there if you choose to come." With that, Seifer heard the clicking her stilettos against the stone floor as she left. She looked straight ahead not noticing Seifer pinned against the wall.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Rinoa twiddled somewhat bored since Selphie and Zell still busied themselves on the dance floor, Seifer was nowhere to be found, and she had yet another tiff with Irvine, and Squall mentioned he had something to do after their dance. She sat down alone at a table with a good view of the dance floor as she sipped on champagne rather unengaged by the ball.

"Rinoa," Seifer called approaching her. Rinoa quickly to her feet and smiled to her oncoming boyfriend. "Say you bored of this thing yet?"

Her lips parted to answer 'Of course', Rinoa peered over Seifer's shoulder seeing Squall coming forth from an isolated corner of the hall. She turned back to him and smiled widely, "No! Come on things just got started. You haven't even danced yet!"

"Yes I did," Seifer replied bluntly.  
"Okay fine, but you want to leave already?" Rinoa tugged at his chest piece whining.  
"Do you want to stay a little longer?"  
"I can do that?"  
"Sure, I'll meet you at your dorm later."  
"Alright!"

They shared a quick kiss and parted. Seifer dashed towards the exit not looking back even once to see Rinoa rushing straight to Squall.

'''''''''''''''''''''''

After a few dances, Selphie felt her feet throb. She'd never asked them to maneuver so deftly in her life. Nida and her took a seat as they snacked on items from the beverage and foods table. Sitting there, Nida talked and Selphie listened; she didn't have much to talk to him about so it worked out for the best. Now that they no longer had the Student Festival Committee to discuss, she realized she didn't much like talking to Nida.

Whatever Selphie felt, her face didn't much hide it for Nida said finally, "You seem bored, or perhaps tired. Would you like to go?"

The ball served as everything Selphie dreamt about: the dances, the beautiful décor, the fashion, and even the miniscule amount of food. Despite the feeling she had to let the night go on in the gorgeous festivity, boredom was outreaching to her. She reluctantly nodded her head, took Nida's arm and was led out.

Unfortunately for Selphie, she didn't realize Nida's definition of leaving meant walking about the Garden grounds while he continued to talk. Selphie was in awe of just how much Nida could say. He'd discussed politics, academics, his family, pets, his dreams of being SeeD, and countless more subjects. Selphie's small mutters of 'uh huh' and 'nice' seemed to suffice for him.

Although still not much entertained by Nida, Selphie did enjoy the warm night. She'd not yet grow accustomed to being outdoors at nightfall, while it was far too cold in Trabia to fathom it. The moonlight bloomed silver light against the garden's courtyards in a most beautiful sight. Plus, Selphie twiddled with her light metallic dress with each step enamored with its slow descend after she kicked it up with her legs.

Finally, Nida stopped walking. The two of them stood in the middle of the courtyard where fountains of trickling water echoed throughout and the light of the moon shone more brightly than it did anywhere else. Selphie observed their surroundings in excitement of its beauty.

"Selphie, I wanted to tell you something." Nida started again quietly. Slowly pulling her attention away from the rest of the night, Selphie faced him and tilted her head cutely with a smile signaling him to continue. "I wanted to say, I'm truly taken by you. Would it be too forward to have a kiss?"

Selphie didn't quite understand what Nida meant 'taken by her'. What had she taken from him? Did she too steal his ring like Rinoa with Squall? Another point confusing her, why was he asking her to kiss her? Very few men had kissed her in her life, a couple of clients but mostly Mr. Devin. There was also a close encounter with Irvine back when they first met. Still unsure how to respond to Nida, she stood still and fidgeted uncomfortably. Despite not answering, Nida moved in closer to her. When doing so his leg accidentally pushed against Selphie's wounded thigh, causing her to release a small cry of pain. Her eyes welled, but Nida had closed his eyes and didn't notice. As he'd come closer, his leg still pressed against hers making her tears grow.

Nida's arms were already around her and his lips just beginning to graze hers. He gave her a gentle push and Selphie found herself locked with Nida in a kiss. The kiss felt uncomfortable as is, but Nida still hadn't moved his leg and Selphie felt she may pass out from the pain. She felt weak, yet Nida held her easily assuming her helplessness was a submission to his embrace. Tears ran down the side of her cheeks as Nida held her as close as he could deepening his kiss.

'''''''''''''''''''''

Rinoa caught up with Squall who returned to a lonely corner still sipping his beverage. She sneaked up beside him and quietly said, "Can I sit with you?"

Squall shrugged shortly and gestured his hand at the many empty chairs around him.

Beaming within herself, Rinoa remained collected and calm while choosing a chair close enough to Squall to hear him over the music yet not so close to appear over flirtatious. After she seated herself comfortably and patted her hair making sure her bun survived the night thus far. Reassured she still looked decent she gazed around the ballroom, still crowded with prospective clients, SeeDs, faculty and few students.

Although Squall had allowed Rinoa to sit with him, he'd not said so much as a word to her. Rather uncomfortable, the raven-haired girl twiddled with her mother's ring that looped around her finger unlike it usually did hanging around her neck. She placed her hands on the table letting the light of the hall gleam off its shiny surface.

"Have you found my ring?" Squall asked, obviously noticing Rinoa's.

With a flush of red coming to her cheeks, Rinoa turned away embarrassed. She did feel guilty about keeping his possession. "You know, I actually did find it when I was getting ready." She blurted her conscious taking hold.

Finally Squall appeared much more attentive suddenly, "Where is it?"

"I— forgot it." Rinoa muttered bashfully. Squall leaned back in his chair returning to his vacant stare. Letting a few music filled moments, Rinoa inhaled deeply and dared to speak again. "Say Squall, you said your sister gave you that ring, right?"

He nodded, not entirely focused on her.

"Well why'd she give it to you?"

Squall looked away in silence for a few moments. He turned back to Rinoa, intent to speak. "She said I had a lion heart."

"That's right!" Rinoa began excitedly, "It had a lion on it, and you never did explain that. A lion heart huh?"

Squall smiled, he actually smiled! Rinoa watched with shock causing her eyes to bulge forward. "A lion heart, because I told her that'd always be her protector, I'd always be strong enough to defeat anyone I wanted." He let his head hang, a still wearing a grin.

"Well? Did you prove it to her?" Rinoa asked earnestly, eager to hear more.

"I was ten, kind of hard to prove anything at that age."

"You were all talk then?" Teased Rinoa sitting back relaxed.

"Not all talk, for a kid I was good using a gunblade."

Rinoa gasped, "At age ten?"

"I was seven or so when I first got it, so three years of practice and I was decent."

"Wow that's kind of like Seifer! He was really good with gunblades ever since he was little!"

Squall stayed quiet, unsure how to respond. The two sat in an awkward silence as Rinoa realized how idiotic bringing Seifer up actually was. She bit her lip nervously thinking of way to overpass the social blunder. As she thought, a waiter carrying a tray of champagne walked passed them. "Wait!" She called jumping to her feet. The waiter, caught off guard stumbled in attempt to stop. Before he'd regained all his balance Rinoa took his tray of champagne, which only had a handful of glasses left.

She returned to the table and set the tray between the two of them. "Drink up Squall the lion heart! Today is your first of many victories to come!" Rinoa lifted a gold colored drink in the air with a grand smile waiting for Squall to reciprocate.

A few moments later, Squall finally agreed grasping a new glass, raising it shortly in the air, and bringing it to his lips. As he drank, Rinoa could see the small curve of a smile on his lips.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

After leaving the ball, Seifer immediately called upon his closest friends, Fujin and Rajin for their help. Together, the three of them marched straight to Training Center. The entire time Fujin and Rajin followed Seifer in silence.

Just as they came to enter the jungle imitating room, Rajin finally spoke up curious to what had possessed Seifer to call them at night when it wasn't to go drinking. "Seifer, what're we doing here? You already passed your test, ya know? Ya don't need to train tonight!"

"PRECISELY. REST." Fujin added sonorously.

"My friends, we're not here to train. I have an advancement to make and you two are to watch my back, you know— keep distractions away." Seifer announced with an evil smirk. They treaded through the mossy grounds until a lighted doorway hidden behind a thick boulder came into partial view. Seifer put a hand on Rajin's thick shoulder, "I'm going in there, you two stay out here and make sure that no one even gets near that door, hear me?"

"AFFIRMATIVE." Fujin said with a nod of her silver haired head. Rajin saluted clumsily with his massive dark hands. Pleased with their dedication, Seifer gave them wry grin and headed into the glowing doorway.

Seifer would be lying if he claimed he'd never been inside the secret area of the Training Center. It was infamous for student rendezvous' after hours and sometimes in the day as well. Normally to mess with students, he Fujin, and Rajin would storm in there announcing the Disciplinary Committee would punish anyone still lip locking after five seconds. Watching the couples break apart and scramble like ants always brought a chuckle.

This time however was different. The dimly lit balcony was empty save for the elegant lady clothed in her black gown. How she managed to cross the entire Training Center in stilettos and a cocktail dress without a single stain amazed him. There was much understating about Instructor Trepe, and Seifer was starting to discover each fact. She stood with her back to him, her hair over her shoulder hidden from Seifer's view.

She hadn't heard Seifer enter, and he preferred it that way. He stepped softly until he stood directly behind her. Now that he'd come this far, he faced a new dilemma, how to announce he'd come in Squall's place? Impulsive actions were always a weakness of Seifer's.

He put his hands around her waist spinning her about. Quistis lost her breath as she looked at Seifer, flabbergasted and shocked. "S-Seifer?"

"Expecting someone else I presume?" Seifer asked playfully.

Instructor Trepe's face fell slowly as she turned her head away, "I suppose not." She brought her attention back to Seifer, who still hadn't released his hold on her waist. "How did you know I was here, and why are **you** here?"

"Let's just say, I enjoyed our dance together so much I came to ask you for another." He moved his hand to clasp hers and stood in position.

"Seifer, don't be silly, there's not even music." Quistis said sadly pulling away from him. She freed herself and began walking towards the exit, disheartened and disappointed.

Seifer began whistling the tune of the waltz that played during Quistis' and his dance at the ball. He watched with keen eyes as his instructor stopped and slowly turned around.

"Seifer," She started in a weak voice, "why are you here? What're doing?"

He continued whistling and swooped grabbing her into a dip, as Instructor Trepe laid in Seifer's arms her eyes softened a bit, not as broken and upset as the moment prior. Seifer lifted back to her feet giving her a small twirl before starting the routine he knew well. After repeating the dance a few times, Seifer's cheeks grew tired and stopped whistling, but Quistis kept dancing, not letting her partner rest his feet for a moment.

She spun, twirled, stepped close, leapt back and jumped in the air. As they continued moving throughout the balcony, Quistis' frown dissolved increasingly and before she knew it, she laughed along with Seifer as they talked between routines.

Seifer lost count of how many times they'd finished and redone the dance but he cared little, he'd began marking them with things Instructor Trepe said.

"You're the last one I expect dancing till midnight."  
"Are you sure you don't want to rush out and go fight some monsters?"  
"I actually come here at this hour a lot."  
"I like quiet places, away from students and faculty, just to read and keep to myself; you know my secret now you best keep it safe!"  
"One of these days I want to travel to Esthar, I hear it's magnificent."

Seifer spun her out as she finished her last statement. "You know I'm from Esthar?"

Quistis smiled at him, "Really? Is that where your fascination with sorceresses started?"

"It certainly helped." The two of them stopped dancing and stood still before one another. Both had lost track of the time and were now lost in each other's gaze. "You know what I'm beginning to discover?"

"What's that?"

"Sorcery isn't only in the hands of sorceresses."

"Is that so?"

"I'm not sure, but I'm certainly close to finding out."

Seifer leaned his head in and closed his eyes bringing his lips to Quistis', and for a moment, she too veiled her eyes and tilted her head back ready to return it. As their lips slightly made contact, Quistis broke away and stepped back several feet. Somewhat disoriented, Seifer raised an eyebrow to her as if to say 'What's going on'?

Instructor Trepe shook her head, "What are we doing Seifer? You have a girl friend and I'm your instructor— you should go, leave now."

"You didn't have a problem yesterday." Seifer replied coldly.

"Please Seifer, just go."

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine licked the rim of his last glass of champagne, saddened to see it end. The night droned on endlessly as his table had slowly filled up with random men, many of which Irvine had never seen or met.

Scarlet on the other hand, felt right at home showered with the men's undivided attention with a few nods and agreements from Irvine between drinks. They group joked and laughed while Irvine used every male around him as mental target practice.

Another target he had in mind was Nida who had just stepped off the dance floor and sat with Selphie at a table. He had his eye on them since, carefully planning his viewing accordingly so Scarlet wouldn't notice. The last thing this night needed was for Scarlet to storm off in front of everyone.

Nida and Selphie were inaudible to him, just moving their lips and heads in silence. Irvine watched keenly as though he'd be ready to shoot at any given moment. After awhile of talking at the table, Nida took Selphie by the arm and began to lead her out of the hall. Upon seeing this, Irvine squeezed the empty champagne glass in his hand so tightly it shattered causing everyone at his table to look at in him in utter silence.

Irvine looked back embarrassed, but instead of admitting that he cleared his throat and turned to Scarlet, "You know I am ready to turn in for the night. Aren't you?"

A sly smile came to her lips as she nodded, she turned to the group of gentlemen and shined her teeth and batted her eyelashes. "Sorry fellas, but I have my date to attend to." She grabbed Irvine's arm and happily let herself be led out of the hall.

Scarlet spent the time it took to leave the ballroom to go to Irvine's dorm, discover the notice that stated where his new dorm was, and the trip to it retelling stories that Irvine spent most of the night ignoring. "Those guys were so funny, right?"

"Hilarious!" Irvine said with a forced laughed as he rummaged with the doorknob to his new dorm. After he finally unlocked it and flicked on the lights of the room, Scarlet immediately hushed as the two of them observed the new room.

The bed was slightly larger than his old one, and beside it was a small nightstand already set up almost identically to his former one. Alongside the wall was a dresser and desk spaced out far more spaciously. A shelf was hung over the desk displaying Irvine's collection of rare rifles given to him by Rinoa for special occasions over the years. All his items and clothes had been neatly placed into the room for him.

"It looks good, doesn't it?" Irvine said proudly.

Scarlet stepped forward letting her heels rap loudly against the tile floor, "It does— but it's missing something." Before Irvine could imagine what she referred to she leapt onto the bed and spread her arms out, gesturing Irvine forth with her slender leg.

"No shoes on the bed," The cowboy teased. He was met with Scarlet's flying shoes buzzing past his head. Swiftly he moved his head out of the way and whistled, "Wow if your weapon was footwear you'd be a SeeD in no time."

"Oh you stop joking and come on over here." Scarlet murmured an in seducing tone.

Irvine loosened the collar of his uniform as he sat on the bed's edge; he looked to the window that hung on wall adjacent to his dresser. The moon glowed brightly illuminating the fields outside. He tugged his collar free while Scarlet rested her soft hands on his shoulders in attempt to aide him. "I can do it myself," He snapped.

Scarlet removed her hands, "Fine you're being awfully slow though." She lay back on the bed watching Irvine continue to fiddle with the neckline of his uniform.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing, nothing— now Irvine darling you're stressed. I can tell." Scarlet's hand crept up to Irvine's thigh, "Just relax now, and lay down."

Irvine kicked off his heavy black boots and listened to Scarlet's suggestion of lying down. As he rested on his back, he watched the ceiling full of messy texture lines. Scarlet kept making attempts to start something, stroking his chest, and kissing his ear. For the first time, Irvine felt like pushing a woman away. His eyes focused on the ceiling, the lines melded together forming shapes in his mind, one shape finally took the figure of a girl. She came to life and laugh, "Hi Irvy!" It said.

Scarlet finally pulled Irvine's view towards her and pressed her lips to his. Immediately Irvine yanked away and sat back up, "What the hell are you doing?"

"Me?" Scarlet snapped sitting up herself, "Me? You're the one who's been acting weird all night! Why did you even call me here if you're going to be such a prude!"

Irvine rubbed his temples and sighed loudly, "I'm sorry I'm just tired." He patted Scarlet's leg, "I've had a lot on my mind." He moved his head towards hers and planted a small kiss on her lips.

Scarlet, who seemed willing to forgive kissed him back and slowly moved her arms around his neck. Despite Scarlet moving in close, and giving her sensuality, Irvine still remained stoic, motionless since his initial kiss. Scarlet ripped away upon realizing this and slapped Irvine hard across the face.

Irvine's eyes shot wide open as he pressed a hand to where Scarlet had slapped him. "Wha- what was that for?"

"Fuck you Kinneas! I'm done with this!" Scarlet scrambled off the bed and shoved her feet back into her heels, "Earlier today you were happy to be with me and were finally willing to commit to a relationship. Tonight all you could do was ogle other girls and ignore me, and NOW you're turning me down in bed? Damnit Irvine! I don't know what kind of mood swing you're going through but I'm not interested I can have any damn man I want and I'm certainly not wasting my time with you anymore!" Scarlet reached for the door and turned back for a final, "GOOD BYE!" She slammed the door behind her.

Irvine watched, speechless and stunned. Although, he'd be lying if he didn't feel somewhat relieved to have Scarlet off his hands. With a loud exasperated groan, he flung himself back on his back. The night had been nothing but a series of failures, Selphie with Nida, fighting with Rinoa, and now even Scarlet had rejected him.

"I need some air." He said quietly as he swung his legs over to the side of the bed. He reached for his new boots and slipped them on quickly.

Irvine hastened down the halls doing his best to avoid small talk with anyone he passed. As it was, it had become rather late and few people still lingered about. Once he finally reached the gates of the Garden he rushed out feeling the refreshing wind. He closed his eyes relishing the feeling of airflow through his hair, unaccustomed to his hat being absent.

It was a quiet night; the only sounds were of the shuffling plants moved by the wind and the trickling water fountains that were placed all around the stone courtyards. The only light available at this time of night was of the moon shining its silver hues on the gray cement. Irvine walked on passing fountains and flowerbeds. He thought about the events of the night that had brought him here alone.

He should've told Selphie how he felt about her going out with Nida, he should never have asked Scarlet out when he can barely stand the girl, and he shouldn't have antagonized Rinoa causing yet another fight between them. Now he was just bitter, angry and frustrated SeeD with nothing better to do than walk alone outside of Garden.

He imagined Rinoa was probably spending the night with Seifer, or perhaps Squall he'd began to lose count on who had a stronger hold on Rinoa's affections. Selphie had left with Nida nearly an hour or so earlier. Irvine's stomach twisted as he thought about the possibilities of the former hooker and desperate Nida alone could be.

At the same time, Irvine detested calling Selphie that. He hated referring her to her old ways. Scarlet fit the profile so much better. Even when Selphie was in Trabia she stood on the sidelines almost hoping never to be chosen, even if it meant starving that night. Now that they were in Balamb, Irvine found Selphie nothing but committed to studying every word that Headmistress Edea said as though it were the words of Hyne himself.

Surely Selphie had gone back to her dorm by now, perhaps she was sleeping or attempting to read, either way Irvine couldn't imagine Nida having the capability to even make a move on a woman.

Irvine came to a stop as he looked before him. Several yards away in the middle of the courtyard stood Nida and Selphie kissing. Selphie had her hands pressed against her own chest, yet Nida had his arms completely around Selphie holding them together closely. Irvine lost his breath; he watched but wanted to tear his eyes away. His entire body shook angrily as he watched Nida attempting to kiss Selphie ever more deeply.

Sickened Irvine finally spouted, "Selphie!"

Almost instantly, Nida pulled away and turned to discover Irvine watching them. He still hadn't noticed Selphie, who now had a trail of tears glinting on her cheeks, Irvine however did notice.

Selphie turned to the area where she heard the voice, her mouth dropped somewhat embarrassed and shocked. Her mouth slowly moved as she uttered, "Irvy?" Her voice, low and weak, could only be heard by Nida, still standing directly next to her. She stepped back several feet, finally free from Nida's hold. Without another word to either of the men, she began running straight passed Irvine, her dress billowing behind her.

"What're you doing here Kinneas?" Nida asked sternly.  
"What're **you** doing Donner?" Irvine returned his coldness.

"I don't believe it's any of your business what my date and I are doing."

"What the hell did you do to make her cry?" Irvine took several steps toward Nida.

Nida thinned his eyes, "I don't have the slightest of what you're talking about but I do know that you can have any girl you could possibly want. You bring the prettiest girl in the entire Garden as your date and yet, and yet!" Nida turned away, his face furled in frustration as he slowed and calmed his speaking speed, "And yet here you are stealing mine. Get your priorities straight Kinneas, women aren't toys for you to play games with." He ignored the fact Irvine was steadily approaching him and passed him without another word.

Again, Irvine stood alone in the quiet dark courtyard.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Rinoa looked around the ballroom as it become significantly emptier than she remembered. In fact, if she didn't know any better, other than the staff who waited and tended to the ball, Squall and her were the only ones left! She returned her view to the table littered with napkins and empty glasses. They must've been lounging about for a few hours, how quickly it passed by.

They had spent the night talking about the exam mainly, discussing the many, many scenarios it could have taken versus the one that had actually gone down. Some were comedic with endings such as the world blowing to smithereens, and others that the two of them came home conquering heroes.

An icebreaker, a few drinks and Rinoa found Squall spoke quite smoothly. Granted she'd talked the most of the two, but every once and awhile Squall would narrate a scenario, his were the most realistic of the bunch. Almost the entire time Rinoa would create a new story, Squall actually smiled.

Rinoa may have failed the SeeD exam, but by the night's end she truly felt accomplished.

"So how's this, instead of coming to Esthar in boats, we use airships! Plus, we get to use the airship's guns and ammunition to start us off. Those monsters would be eliminated and Balamb Garden would be forever revered as the home of the sky demons!" Rinoa ended her tale with arms outstretched arms and an excited face. "Or sky lions if you prefer," she added quickly keen to use the term lion in as many stories as she could.

Squall stayed quiet and thought for a moment, "Our post was a bridge— wouldn't we destroy it using an airship?"

"SO? Those monsters would be out of there and we'd still be even better known as sky lions!"

Taking in the last bit of his drink, Squall gave her a small grin. He set his glass down and looked around the hall realizing how sparsely populated it'd become. "It's late." He stated quietly.

Rinoa, saddened by that truth, nodded. "Yeah, I guess we should get going." She stood up and walked a few feet, she then turned around to speak to Squall, "You know Squall, I have a lot of fun talking to you." She said with a friendly smile. She waited a few moments in hopes for Squall to reply with something along the same lines, when he didn't she finished saying, "Well goodnight." Rinoa then walked off letting nothing but the echoes of her heeled shoes accompany her out.

She knew expecting a thoughtful goodbye was out of reach, but at least she left knowing Squall too enjoyed their night. The different fantasy stories of the SeeD exam ran through her mind as she recollected every facial gesture Squall made. Every smile he had made her skip a beat.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Seifer dragged his feet bitterly out of the secret place confused and somewhat angry about what had taken place within. He looked over his shoulder half expecting Instructor Trepe to be there. As it should be, she wasn't.

What she had said was true; Seifer did have a girlfriend and even if he didn't Instructor Trepe was just as she said, his instructor! For the first time in history, Seifer felt like that idiotic Baku. Admirable and desiring of his own teacher, it sounded rather disgusting in his own head.

However, Instructor Trepe wasn't older than him. In fact, a few years ago she and him were in the same class. The difference was she passed her SeeD exam a year earlier than most students did, and he failed it once putting him two years behind her. It wasn't the worst relationship but despite their ages, Instructor Trepe had pointed out the obvious flaws in what they almost did. He wasn't a single man, and she wasn't in his range of women to pursue.

Fujin and Rajin met up with Seifer as he reached the exit of the training center, still Seifer kept quiet hoping to hear Instructor Trepe following him or calling his name. Neither occurred and the three of them walked to the dormitories in silence.

As Seifer came to Rinoa's dorm he turned to his comrades feeling a bit obligated for grabbing them in the middle of the night. "Thank you, Fujin, Rajin." He said quietly, "I bet Pretty Boy wasn't easy to handle."

Rajin and Fujin exchanged glances and turned back to Seifer with the same blank stare. "Seifer, no one came. Our work was pretty easy, ya know?"

Seifer blinked several times. Despite Instructor Trepe almost begging him, Squall didn't even try showing up? Maybe it was good thing Seifer came, otherwise Quistis would've been at the Training Center for hours waiting for someone who didn't even plan on showing. "Oh, well then goodnight." He muttered quickly as he entered the dorm.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Once Rinoa finally reached her room, she opened the door to find Seifer sitting in the main common waiting for her. "Seifer!" Her mind raced as she had completely forgotten about meeting up with her own boyfriend. Hastily, she wiped her shocked appearance and replaced with a happier more pleased face. "I mean, Seifer! You're here!"

Seifer, a rather insightful person, raised one eyebrow almost unconvinced. "I got here about ten minutes ago." He stated.

"Good, you weren't waiting too long then!" She continued her voice elevating in cheerfulness. She sat down beside Seifer and leaned her head on his shoulder, "You know though, I'm just really tired tonight. Do you we think we could hold off till oh I don't know next week?"

"Next week? What the— Rinoa we've been doing this for awhile now, what the hell?" Seifer snapped immediately.

"Hey, it's not only my fault, you've been busy too." Rinoa raised her voice as she pressed her hands to her chest defensively.

With a frustrated groan Seifer came to his feet, "This is a special night for me Rinoa, what the hell have you been doing all night to make you so tired?"

"N-nothing!" Rinoa started, her face slowly becoming a reddish color, "It's just late. I mean I go to sleep at this time normally anyways!" She bit her lip as guilt settled in her stomach. She was ruining Seifer's night and lying to him, tonight wasn't so perfect after all.

"I may have been busy but you haven't helped much always acting so damn friendly with Pretty Boy! You know he irritates me and you still hang out with him every chance you get!"

The guilt that had settled rose up bubbling causing Rinoa much anxiety. She watched Seifer paced furiously before her. Part of her wanted to tell her why she really was trying to send him away, the other part didn't have the heart. How could she tell her boyfriend, the only man she's actually been with that she didn't want to be with him—at all? She couldn't tell him that, at least not now, not on his night. Then again, spending the entire night with his rival and then lying about it didn't seem to be working in her favor either.

"I'm sorry Seifer… I'm just not in the mood." She said finally.

Seifer glared at her with eyes fueled with burning anger, "Fine," he said coldly, "go to hell." With that, he marched out the door slamming it thunderously behind him.

Rinoa's eyes welled up, hurt by Seifer's statement. Normally if he said something even close to that she'd be fuming versus saddened, but along with Seifer's rage her guilt had narrowed her emotions. She curled her knees close to her body and started to weep onto the hems of her dress.

One of the bedroom doors behind her opened quietly as Selphie stepped out. Her hair, slightly frazzled remained straight but the rest of her attire had changed from a glittering silver vision to a girl in a long loose t-shirt.

Upon seeing her, Rinoa rubbed her cheeks dry. "S-selphie, I didn't know you were back already. I thought you'd be with Nida still."

Selphie sat down near her friend and shrugged, "Nah, I came awhile ago." She twiddled her legs uncomfortably not sure what to say to as she had just heard Rinoa and Seifer's loud argument.

"Did you have fun?" Rinoa asked rubbing her eyes.

Selphie tilted her head back and thought for a moment. Truth be told, she had an amazing night— all up until Nida kissed her and pushed against her injured leg. To top the moment off, Irvine had come and appeared rather angry when he saw them. Overwhelmed by the pain of her leg and fear that Irvine actually was angry, she ran out and spent the rest of the night icing her thigh. "Yeah I did." She finally replied with a small smile.

"That's good," Rinoa replied, her voice breaking still recovering from crying, "So I take it you heard everything?"

With an embarrassed shrug, Selphie nodded. "Yeah, eh kinda." She let her bare feet play and draw invisible pictures on the tile beneath her, looking down she continued, "So what happened?"

Rinoa's tears started to fall again, not letting it affect her speech she quietly said, "It's a long story, one I'm not very proud of."

"You should sleep, it'll make you feel better!" Selphie replied cheerfully.

"I guess you're right." Rinoa said holding back her sobs.

The two girls gave each other a hug and disappeared behind their room doors.

''''''''''''''''''''''''

Seifer walked down the dark gray colored hall as he read the room change notice that he retrieved from his old dorm. As he made his way to his new room, he heard a voice stopping him.

"Hey there handsome."

Stopping, Seifer turned to the side and spotted a girl on the nook of a window. She smirked, not widely, just curving her perfectly red lips. "You look like you're having a rough night like me."

The day started well, somewhat. Rinoa had been stressing him out for the greater half of it only to completely ruin it now. Two women had rejected him on the night of his greatest success. There had been better days for him. He observed the girl again making out her dark curled hair and curvy body. After a moment, Seifer recognized the girl as the notorious Scarlet. "Hasn't been the easiest," Seifer admitted, "but it's almost over."

"Why not try making it a bit better, or bitter?" Scarlet continued, laughing as smoothly as wine. She held up a flask, the moonlight reflected off its shiny surface. "That ball had some weak attempts but I got the good stuff riiiiight here. I don't like drinking alone though."

Seifer clicked his tongue, drinking alone was something he resorted too after dismissing Fujin and Rajin. Scarlet seemed to a have a point, why not try making the most of his night? Instructor Trepe and Rinoa might have tried their best to ruin it, but he could make it all better. Scarlet shook the elixir of happiness before him.

"Well, if you're sharing, I'll join you." Seifer gestured his arm outward towards the direction of his new room. Scarlet came to her feet with a wry grin as she unfastened the flask and handed it to Seifer.

_It is absurd to divide people into good and bad. People are either charming or tedious._

_-__Oscar Wilde_

_To Aubrey! Thank you for showing me someone is still reading!  
Hope you were able to follow the time sequence and that most things happened at the same time. _


	32. Chapter 31

_"Saikin choushi doudai?"_  
_("How are you doing recently?")_

_Beautiful World  
__Chapter Thirty-One_

Irvine paced back and forth in his room. Before actually becoming a SeeD he'd always imagined he'd find other creative ways to relish his newfound privacy, however time changes all as Irvine had discovered, time and Selphie Tilmitt.

He'd barely slept, after spending what felt like an hour in the dark courtyards last night, it only led back to his room miserable and more alert than ever. The cowboy stopped pacing and threw himself on his new, larger bed. The pieces of the puzzle were a jumbled mix to him.

Selphie and Nida were kissing, yet Selphie was crying. As it was, Nida never struck Irvine as a forceful fellow; Selphie must've allowed him to kiss her. Did that imply Selphie wanted to be kissed by Nida? Was she actually interested in him? Had Irvine asked her to the ball before him, would he even have had a chance? What if he hadn't broken them up last night? Where would it have led?

Irvine banged a fisted hand against his mattress. He'd been bouncing possible ideas in his head all night, between bouts of sleep. He returned to his feet and brushed his front hair with his hand before leaving his dorm. For the first time ever, he felt somewhat unsettled that he didn't see Zell scrambling to find his books when he exited his room. With Rinoa furious with him, talking to Zell actually felt ideal. Shocked that Irvine was actually going to do this, he went back into his room, found the notice that Zell and him were both given about their new rooms and traveled to the dorm number indicated under Zell's name.

When Zell answered his door to his former roommate, he stood rather appalled. The main reason because Irvine appeared as he normally did in the morning, half dressed and sleepy looking. Zell stuck his head out his door and observed the hallway, "Are we still roommates, man?"

Irvine flashed a quick grin and pushed passed Zell, letting himself in. Zell's dorm, like his, was set up to perfection. His collection of fighting gloves hung in a neat vertical line on the wall polished. A punching bag and speed bag had been set up in the corner and the mess of Combat Kings that used to litter their dorm from corner to corner had taken residency on a shelf, placed in numerical order. As it was Zell's first night, he, like Irvine, hadn't the chance to make a mess of what the Garden Faculty had worked so diligently to do.

"Nice room." Irvine commented finally sitting himself on the corner of Zell's bed.

Zell raised an eyebrow pulling his chair from his desk and sitting himself down, "Eh, not to be mean or anything, but what the hell are you doing here?"

With a big smile, Irvine held his hands out, "We're friends! Can't a friend come say hello to another friend?"

Unconvinced, Zell crossed his arms.

"Okay, we're pretty friendly for two guys who were forced to live with each other, no?" Irvine continued in a leading voice hoping Zell would agree.

"Seriously man, what do you want? Isn't kind of early for you to be up?" Zell said, referring to Irvine's notorious sleeping in habit.

Irvine leaned back, his torso long enough to reach the wall before he was able to land his back on the bed. "I needed to talk to someone. Rinoa and I are in an argument— again."

"Is that what you wanted to talk about? Rinoa?"

"Not really, I'll deal with that myself. I wanted to talk about—" Irvine stopped, seriously considering if he wanted to have this discussion with Zell. "I wanted to ask you if you knew anything about Nida and er— Selphie."

Zell blinked and tilted his head back in thought, "Eh, not much. Just that they were together at the ball last night. He told me he'd asked her out, and she said yes. That just about sums it up."

"Do you think he likes her a lot?"

"He must like her at least a little to ask her to the ball."

Irvine sighed, disheartened slightly. "I guess he does then. You don't know if Selphie likes him back, do you?"

Zell rubbed the back of his head running his large hand through his bristled blonde hair. "I don't talk to Selphie really, but to be fair, usually I don't talk you either." He observed Irvine's moping face, "But you seem real upset. What, do you got a thing for Selphie or something?"

Irvine turned his head refusing to answer.

With a small chuckle, Zell continued to talk, "Well if you do, I don't think you have to worry. I think she likes you too. She's always really happy around you, and since she's still around my guess is you haven't slept with her and broken her heart yet, huh?"

_Even if I had slept with her, that probably wouldn't have broken her heart, or even fazed her. _Irvine thought bitterly as he imagined sex had little sanctity to either of them anymore.

"Listen Kinneas, you've been so busy chasing girls all the time when I'm pretty sure you've liked Selphie ever since she got here. Just chill it with the others and give a Selphie a go. If you're worried about Donner, don't be. You're Irvine Kinneas, nothing gets in your way of women."

_You know, he's right… I am Irvine Kinneas! _"You know Zell? You're right, I am Irvine Kinneas!" The cowboy exclaimed triumphantly. "If I want to know what's going on between those two, I'm just going to go the source and handle it there!" He jumped to his feet and looked to the door ready to march onward. He stopped short and turned around to Zell, leaning back in his chair. "Thanks." Irvine said softly.

"No prob, you know you're not so bad, man." Zell said with a shrug.

"Yeah, you too." Irvine replied with a chuckle.

A knock sounded at the door and Zell leapt to his feet and zoomed passed Irvine to answer it. Standing in the doorway with a big smile, stood Amy neatly dressed in her school uniform. "Hi Zell." She greeted sweetly.

"If you don't mind Kinneas, I got things to attend to." With a grin, Zell gingerly took Amy's hand within his enormous palms. She blushed with a smile as she twiddled her lone pigtail with her free hand.

Irvine exited the dorm letting Zell lock it as he left, hand in hand with Amy. For the first time ever, Irvine felt envious of Zell. He was gentleman taking his simple girl to breakfast; they were two kids crazy about each other steadily taking their relationship further.

For the first time, Irvine wished he wasn't an infamous skirt chaser. That he hadn't manipulated, fooled, and broken countless of women's hearts while conquering their bodies. He wished Selphie were a simple student who attended Balamb Garden, not a former girl from the streets in search of a new life. He could spend the rest his time wishing, or he could let Selphie have her new life and he become a gentleman taking his simple girl out to breakfast.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Last night, was a mess.

That remained the only thought in Seifer's head. Why in hyne's name had he followed Instructor Trepe to Training Center's secret area? Why in the world did he leave Rinoa alone at the ball? Why in all that is good or evil did he take liquor from a girl he barely knew letting her drink with him? Last night, was such a mess.

Why was she still here?

Seifer looked at Scarlet who slept on her side quietly. He had cheated on Rinoa, with someone he didn't even like! Seifer massaged his temples thinking of the best solution to take. Who to discuss it with? Discuss? Why would he start discussing things with people now?

He wanted to blame someone or something. More than anything, he wanted to say it was Rinoa's fault for sending him out of her dorm. Seifer could only imagine running that by her, claiming that her one rejection gave him reason to cheat. He couldn't blame Rinoa, it was as though he was fated to cheat. Before Scarlet, Seifer made a move on his own Instructor. Last night, certainly was a mess.

What action Seifer now needed to take was to get Scarlet out of his room without anyone knowing. Everything would be fine if she were just gone.

A small knock came from the door. Seifer spun quickly as the sound continued followed by Rinoa's voice. "Seifer? Hey, we need to talk. I'm sorry how last night went, please open the door."

Not sure how to react, Seifer remained stationary as he took in the situation. If anyone laid eyes on him they'd be shocked to find out how frazzled he really was. His face remained stoic as he quietly walked to the door and cracked it open. He raised an eyebrow as he observed Rinoa outside who held out a vase with flowers in it.

"I brought you a room warming gift." She said meekly holding the vase out.

Seifer swelled within with guilt, as Scarlet's presence began to burn him inside. "I can't talk right now Rinoa." He said quietly ready to close the door again.

Rinoa held an arm out grabbing the door from being closed. She began to push with all her strength, and fearful that she may succeed, Seifer stopped resisting making Rinoa also stop. "Listen Seifer, you can't igno—" Something came within Rinoa's field of vision stopping her words faster than she thought possible. The vase in her hands slipped shattering loudly and echoing throughout the hallway.

Confused, Seifer turned his head seeing Scarlet up and about stretching her legs while covering herself with a bed sheet. He returned his head back now facing Rinoa whose eyes had turned into bulging tear filled orbs. "I can explain," Seifer started knowing it was an absolute lie.

Obviously not willing to hear whatever Seifer concocted, Rinoa used all her strength and punched Seifer's face. Being far stronger than Rinoa, it only pushed Seifer back a bit, but as it was a surprise Seifer blinked in shock rubbing the reddened part of his face. Still hopeful, he reached his out to stroke her arm, but before he could, Rinoa yanked her body out of reach.

"DON'T TOUCH ME!" She screamed, and then she turned sharply and rushed down the hall leaving Seifer and Scarlet to a doorway of broken glass, water and flowers.

''''''''''''''''''''''''

It rarely occurred that Selphie would wake and find Rinoa gone. She didn't dwell on it of course. Instead of worrying about her roommate, Selphie more or less concerned herself with the two men from last night, and how she did not want to deal with them.

There seemed no real way of explaining to Nida why she ran off, if he asked she'd be left speechless. As for Irvine, the dread of him being angry made her sick to her stomach. The thought of having to deal with either one of them seemed uncomfortable and terrible.

Lucky for Selphie, she had a long day ahead of her. Matron piled the prior day's work as well as today's. Afterwards, Instructor Trepe wasted no time with her new free time to pen Selphie in for more lessons with her. Normally they'd only met once or twice a week as Instructor Trepe had several students to meet with in preparation of the SeeD exam. Now that it'd cleared up, ambitious Instructor Trepe told Selphie they'd meet every other day if not more.

She packed up her notebooks into her arms and gazed about her room to ensure she had all for the day. Her Flail lay carefully on the desk, still highly glossed as it only been used when Irvine had time to take Selphie to train. Even then, only rarely did she feel confident to go up against a real monster. Selphie ran a finger over its smooth surface considering stuffing the weapon into her arms.

Irvine was one the top things to avoid, so obviously there'd be no training with him. Maybe Instructor Trepe would take her? Hopeful, Selphie squeezed her notebooks under one arm and freed the other for her Flail.

As Selphie advanced to class, she recollected the times she'd spent in Trabia. The days were unpredictable, however never exciting. Everyday unveiled a new dread, but only now did Selphie realize how dreadful it actually was. Her means of a job never seemed as terrible as it did now when she no longer had to do it. Starvation only felt natural until she had meals given her to regularly. A rock hard floor in a frozen cold house felt homely before her wonderful living quarters she now lived in.

However, there were times spent in Trabia, particularly with Mr. Devin that felt dream like. There were days she spent in his manor, dressed as finely as ever and fed the most exquisite meals, sleeping on mattresses that felt like clouds themselves. Those days, although, were followed by countless uncomfortable encounters with men, mostly Mr. Devin.

Despite the awkwardness of the night before, Selphie would never exchange the calm and average life she had in Balamb, versus the extremes of poverty and extravagance she experienced back in Trabia. She decided if she surpassed all the trials Trabia had thrown, surely facing Nida and eventually Irvine would be possible.

''''''''''''''''''''''

Rinoa stormed down the hall fuming in anger. _Who does he think he is? I tell him to leave me alone for one night and he gets the Garden whore to replace me? Does he even think he has a chance now? I can't believe him, just because it was his SeeD exam yesterday he thinks he's all high and mighty now. That complete arrogant, insolent, inconsiderate— _

Before Rinoa could finish her inner monologue of frustration and anger, she bumped head first into her roommate who'd been holding a great deal of books and papers. Rinoa watched as the items scattered across the floor around them before meeting eyes with Selphie. Selphie simply blinked as she sadly looked at the articles that now lay in a mess being blown about from the breeze that rushed through the halls from the many open windows.

"Oh Selphie—" Rinoa started. There were many ways she had intended to finish her sentence, mostly involving apologies and small brief explanations. However, before any of the possibilities came to her lips, Rinoa's eyes swelled with tears as she began to cry. She sniffled instead of wailed, but nonetheless cried as she knelt to the floor. With arms wide, she scooped up the clutter of study materials into her arms and handed them back to Selphie as neatly as she could manage with such few steps.

Selphie still hadn't said anything, most likely because she was confused passed all reason. She looked at the pile of books and paper in her arms that used to be her neat stack. After realizing Rinoa obviously had given her best attempt, Selphie met her roommate's gaze to discover her wet eyes and distraught face.

From the night before, Selphie had been aware of the rough argument Rinoa had with Seifer, and how she'd been crying from that. Assuming this had only carried on, Selphie forced a smile as if to say 'don't worry about it' as she sat down on the floor and properly arranged her items back into her arms.

Rinoa gave a Selphie a thankful glance as she rushed away. She felt rather embarrassed for her random outburst of crying but currently she felt to overwhelmed by the day already. Purposely avoiding eye contact from all around her, Rinoa kept her gaze strictly to the floor, hoping not to bump into someone again.

Before she knew it, her feet had carried her outside of Balamb Garden into the courtyards, empty as usual. Rinoa observed her quiet surroundings with her tear filled eyes as she slowly advanced across the walkways with the sound of her shoes hitting the gray cement as her only companion.

_I know Seifer had a right to be mad, but he didn't have to do something like that. Has he been cheating on me for a while…? _

The need for Seifer to have an affair left Rinoa dizzy with insecurity. She took a seat against the ledge of a flowerbed and stared at her feet while her mind bounced upsetting thoughts back and forth. So lost in thought, it was no wonder she didn't hear someone else crossing through the courtyards.

"Rinoa," Squall said in voice that sounded more cheery than his conventional tone.

Very little affected Rinoa at the moment, not the cool refreshing morning wind, not the sweet aromas of the countless flowers, not the relaxing sounds of the trickling fountains and singing birds, but Squall's voice broke her thought. She felt her attention forced away from her feet and own mind as she looked to Squall.

"Squall…" She breathed. Without thinking, without even taking another breath, she came to her feet, advanced over to Squall, and pressed her lips against his.

The kiss was shallow, however Rinoa planted her kiss as long as she could manage while firmly holding Squall's shoulders. After she freed his lips of her own, she simply stood in place, not even removing her hands. In shock of her own actions, she stood still, within a foot before Squall. The two remained there in silence unsure of how to react on either end.

Squall finally broke their stillness as he pulled away from Rinoa's once tight hold on his shoulders and turned around quickly, not meeting her gaze. "I have to go," He muttered. With that, Squall rushed out of sight leaving Rinoa alone in the courtyards to again sit in thought.

What had she done…?

'''''''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine didn't mean to follow Zell and Amy to the cafeteria, he just found himself beside them. However, they became good sports about it maintaining idle conversation that Irvine could easily join. Regardless of what he said, half his mind still lingered on the thought of Selphie.

When the three of them finally entered the cafeteria, Zell glanced at Irvine pleadingly as if to say 'Please go!' Irvine, gracious for Zell's company earlier, took a hint and let the couple head to a table of their own while took a seat amongst the morning crowd. Still un-groomed and groggy, Irvine rested back in his seat imagining what he'd even say if Selphie and him met paths today. Whatever she did was not his business, yet he so dearly wanted to know what happened.

Were Nida and her still seeing each other? Did they have other plans last night?

While continued to ponder, he noticed Rinoa walk into the cafeteria. Her face was red and puffy, and her eyes wet. Her entire face appeared pale and miserable. Rinoa seldom appeared in this nature and despite their argument from the night before Irvine felt compelled to confront her and find out what had put her in such a distasteful mood.

Rinoa walked slowly, dragging her feet lifelessly until she dropped herself into an empty chair at a barren table. She watched the crowd move about around her with a blank stare, so lost in her own mind she didn't notice or react to Irvine taking a seat close beside her.

"Rin, Rin!" Irvine called placing his hands on her shoulders.

Slowly, Rinoa turned her head to Irvine, her eyes welled and she buried her head into his chest. Irvine patted her head softly as he slowly began dragging his crying mess of a friend to his dorm. Once there he sat Rinoa on the bed where she curled up and sobbed some more while Irvine pulled out the chair from his desk and sat directly in front of her.

"Rinoa? Are you going to tell me what's wrong?" Irvine asked quietly.

Rinoa rubbed her eyes and raised herself up weakly. She sniffed a few times before she turned to Irvine and retorted, "Why weren't you with Scarlet last night!"

In a complete state of shock, Irvine blinked several times while thoughts zoomed through his mind. What did Scarlet have to do with anything? How did Rinoa know anything about it? Had Scarlet been going about spreading some rumor? _Just got to face whatever it is,_ Irvine thought as inhaled deeply. "Why are ya asking me that?"

Stiffly, Rinoa returned her view to the bed she laid on and bitterly replied, "I know who she was with last night— and it wasn't you."

Irvine ran a hand through his hair as he sighed, "Aw Rin, I'm sorry. I didn't think Squall was that kind of guy though. But you can't blame m—"

"Squall?" Rinoa interrupted quickly. As Irvine pursed his lips confused about what he'd said, he observed Rinoa who sat up and hugged her knees in. "You think Scarlet was with Squall? No— she wasn't with Squall at all. She was with Seifer…"

As the words tumbled out of Rinoa's lips, Irvine's mouth dropped open. He himself knew he was capable of terrible things, and had committed several in the past but he never knowingly made a move on someone in a relationship. Knowingly being the key word. Although, Irvine felt that his first guess would've made more sense. "You know Rin, I can't believe you're this upset about it. I mean, it seems like you'd be glad to finally have a reason to break things off with him, don't ya think?"

"What?" Rinoa screamed, "Oh that's right Kinneas! I'm glad the only boyfriend I've ever had decided to dignify our relationship enough to cheat on me when things were getting dry. I'm so glad that even though I kept to myself and made sure I didn't cheat when the opportunity seemed so great that he beat me to the cut."

"You know you always forget I was your first boyfriend—" Irvine started.  
"SHUT UP! I can't believe you'd think I'm glad about this!"  
"Ya know, something doesn't quite add up though, why would've he been with Scarlet? Weren't you guys together all last night?"

Finally, Rinoa calmed down and quietly looked away, she avoided Irvine's eyes contact almost ashamed. "No, we weren't…" She stayed quiet for several moments as she gazed out the window, lost in thought. "Gosh, who am I kidding? I don't care that Seifer and me are over, I'm just hurt that it ended like this. You remember a while ago you said that Seifer might not care about Squall anymore because he's probably having an affair of his own? I think now you're right. I know I wasn't interested myself anymore but it doesn't mean I'm so terrible that he'd need to go behind my back and find someone else. I'm not even holding him chained to me, he never once said he was thinking of breaking up, just I don't get it."

With a sympathetic smile, Irvine climbed onto the bed beside his friend, as he let her lean on him while he safely wrapped her in his comforting arms. He stayed quiet as Rinoa softly let a few more tears slide from her eyes. "Irvine, I really messed up."

"Rinoa, your relationship might've been in the gutter but in the end he messed up, not you. You can't blame yourself."  
"No, Irvine I messed up. I kissed Squall."

Irvine dropped his head to see the top of Rinoa's head, "What! When?"

Rinoa continued talking calmly, defeated, and tired. "Just a little while ago. I was just so angry. I wanted to do something that'd make Seifer really mad and make me really happy, and luckily that goes really well hand in hand. He was there and I was in the courtyard miserable, and I kissed him. No warning, no nothing. He probably thinks I'm a freak and won't ever come near me again. I'm such a loser."

Irvine stayed quiet as he let Rinoa lay in her own tears. Her words sunk into his mind as he thought hard about replying, he chose his words carefully before beginning to utter. "Rinoa, you didn't do anything wrong—"

"Yes I did!" Rinoa cried out shrilly burying her face even deeper into Irvine's shoulder. "I messed it up with Squall before anything started and I've probably ruined it if ever wanted to go back to Seifer!"

"Rinoa!" Irvine shouted more seriously than he'd ever sounded when not in battle.

Taken aback by Irvine's sense of graveness Rinoa stopped sobbing and met her friend's gaze. Though he'd just shouted in a somewhat angry matter, he gave her a soft look as he patted her head gently, "Rinoa, you're upset now, but you know you don't want to go back to Seifer. You guys have barely been in a relationship at all for the past couple of months. As for Squall, listen; you can talk things out with him. I can't imagine he'd be too upset, a pretty gal gave him a big ol' kiss, I'm sure he'll forgive ya." Irvine threw a small wink. Beaming from Irvine's short pep talk Rinoa went in a friendly hug.

"Thanks Irvine." She said relaxing in his embrace.

The two sat in silence for several minutes caught in thought while hugging each other. Finally, Rinoa broke the stillness when she asked in a curious voice, "So why weren't you with Scarlet last night?"

Irvine moved away and slid off the bed. He paced the length of his room wondering if he wanted to admit to Rinoa just how much Selphie had taken over his mind, to the point that sex with random women didn't appeal to him as much. Although Rinoa knew Irvine had some sort of strong feeling, he just couldn't bare the thought of his best friend being discouraging as she had been.

"I didn't want to be with her, I'd barely been paying any attention to her all night. Instead, I was thinking about Selphie—" He paused at his window and leaned his forehead on the wall, afraid of how Rinoa would reply.

"Go on," She said softly.

Too hesitant to look at her just in case she'd change her mind Irvine began to speak again, a little more hastened. "Well, I saw them leave, Nida and Selphie. I don't know what I was thinking, I followed them out, with Scarlet. I don't know what they were up to I just knew no matter what Scarlet and I were doing I couldn't get my mind off them. Scarlet could tell I wasn't into it, and she got pretty mad. So she dumped me for ignoring her all night."

Irvine rubbed the back of his neck bashfully. Truly, only Rinoa would ever hear the truth of Irvine Kinneas having a girl ditch him. In all other eyes, he was a legend of pure desire, with an air that diminished rejection at the source. Once Irvine had passed over the slight embarrassed feeling he continued his story, "I couldn't sleep so I took a walk, and I saw Selphie with Nida. They were kissing, and—"

"Oh dear Hyne, Irvine you didn't punch him did you!" Rinoa cried out frantically as she cupped her hands over mouth in horror.

"No!" Irvine retorted, "Well eh, I wanted too. Rin, Selphie was crying and that jackass was still just going to town!" With a long sigh, the cowboy rested at the edge of the bed and hung head, "I don't know how long their session lasted, but Selphie saw me and ran off. I don't know what to do now, I can't get that scene out of my mind."

"You should talk to her," Rinoa said sweetly patting Irvine's shoulder, "and find out what happened. Who knows, maybe you helped her out?"

"Or maybe I ruined a great night for her. It's killing me," He exhaled loudly, "but you're right Rinoa. If she likes Nida then I can't let my selfishness get the best of me…"

While still in the middle of Irvine's sentiment, Rinoa rushed her hands over his forehead pressing the back to his skin. "What the heck are ya doing?" He snapped shoving his friend's fluttering hands away.

"Irvine," Rinoa began quietly, "Either you're not feeling well or, you're really falling for this girl, **hard**."

Irvine rubbed the back of his neck and ran his long fingers through his hair. He allowed his mind to drift to an imaginary place where Selphie and he were actually together, holding hands, talking, laughing, and not caring about anyone else but each other. He reminisced about the moments they'd spent together, their date in Trabia, practicing outside Garden, even working at the Student Festival Committee. A small chuckle escaped him, "Heh, guess I am."

'''''''''''''''''''''''''

Selphie spent a long and tiresome day filled with lectures and schoolwork. Although she appreciated the learning process more than anyone did her age, her distracted mind made things more difficult for her instructors. Teaching Selphie already came at a high challenge since her skill level greatly fell behind those of everyone else at Garden, Headmistress Edea and Instructor Trepe dutifully continued hoping she'd eventually catch up.

Today both of her teachers tried to cram in two days of work due to the loss time from the SeeD exam the day before, however, the extra effort was lost on Selphie's blank expressions.

Luckily for Selphie, the last of her lessons were ending. Instructor Trepe, whose sole focus was to instruct Selphie in means of combat and fighting, decided to teach her about drawing magics and G.F's from enemies. Instructor Trepe herself felt it was ambitious to expect Selphie to comprehend so much in one sitting however, she couldn't help but to notice Selphie seemed completely lifeless.

Normally Selphie, although usually completely clueless the entire lesson, would sit up straight with a shining smile, asking questions constantly, and showed genuine enthusiasm. Quistis understood today's lesson wasn't the most interesting but did it really warrant this complete change of personality?

"Since everyone has their own capability of storing magics and G.F.'s, depending on—" Quistis glanced behind her moving her view from her board full of posters and markings she'd drawn. As she met eyes with her typically joyful student, she sighed loudly and sat down at her desk. Selphie remained, as she had been since she walked in, emotionless, bored and still. "Selphie," She started.

Selphie blinked and looked into Instructor Trepe's eyes more intuitively than she'd been the entire class.

"Selphie, is something the matter? You're normally so much more cheery than this, you just don't seem yourself. What's wrong?"

Unsure if Selphie really wanted to talk about the drama from the night before with her instructor, she did know that talking about it with someone would feel better. She thought unusually long thinking of how to start her story leaving Instructor Trepe to silence answering her.

"I'm just upset, I guess. I think Irvy is mad at me, and I bet Nida is too." She started shuffling her feet uncomfortably. "Something happened with them last night, and I know they probably have something to say, but I'm too scared to find out. I guess I'm being sorta silly about it."

Instructor Trepe smiled, she herself had a messy encounter with Seifer last night, and although she didn't have to see him till the next class after the weekend, she did dread what it'd be like. What would she say to him, and vice versa? She also felt bashful and embarrassed that despite having invited Squall to meet her in the secret place, he never showed. Quistis hadn't decided whether or not she wanted to confront either of them about the events that occurred, however it may not come down to her decision if one of them came and questioned her about it.

"I completely understand," Instructor Trepe started, she stood up and gently paced about, " It seems this dilemma of yours is rather distracting, but although you're bothered by it, it appears you're not quite ready to confront your friends, no?"

Selphie watched her instructor with wide eyes as though she could see her soul and spoke directly to it. Her head nodded vigorously in agreement.

"I propose you go ahead and leave this matter for awhile." Quistis stopped pacing, her back to Selphie, and facing the wall. "If you're not prepared to speak your mind, then you tend to misconstrue what you want to say, in other words your point won't get across. I realize you're too distracted to listen to Headmistress Edea and myself but you'll find occupying yourself less of a challenge if you choose the activity. When you're ready to talk to your friends, do so then. Until that time comes around, try to find something to do that will keep your mind at ease." She came to a stop and closed her eyes hoping Selphie wouldn't realize that she spoke purely out of wishful hoping and not experience. Although the entire idea remained faulty in logic, so long as no one pointed it out, both could easily follow.

Selphie smiled and leapt to her feet, "Okay! I can do that! Thanks Instructor!" She beamed and scurried to clumsily grab her items and rushed out the door without another word. She knew exactly how to spend her time!

Upon hearing the electronic doors close, Quistis relaxed and supremely relieved she herself had a day or two before her confrontation would face her.

'''''''''''''''''''''''

The whole day had passed with Rinoa and Irvine dwindling away their time together. They stayed in Rinoa's room talking and spending quality time together, they'd been missing out on for the past weeks. Irvine didn't particularly mind, he didn't have anything of real importance to attend to, and finally mending the issues between Rinoa and him certainly was a burden off his head. It also gave him time to work on a mandatory speech all SeeD's were required to present upon their next class.

"You know, Akii will mark you down if you don't spend an entire minute praising his instructing ability in that speech of yours." Rinoa joked. While the two of them conversed, Irvine finished his speech happy with what he wrote, but still preoccupied about everything else happening.

It came long passed after dark and the whole day went by without Selphie returning to the dorm. Rinoa told Irvine she bumped into Selphie in the morning completely buried with books and notes, that it seemed rather safe of an assumption that Selphie was just preoccupied studying.

Although it killed Irvine to simply push aside the events that occurred with Selphie the night before, he didn't want to disturb her. Perhaps it was best he just try again tomorrow.

"Don't worry so much Irvine, she'll be here tomorrow morning. Just come here first thing in the morning." Rinoa said consolingly.

Irvine rubbed the back of his neck in disappointment, "Yeah I guess, can't do much else can I?" He turned to Rinoa who rocked herself back and forth while hugging in her knees. Her eyes remained pinned to the window by her bed gazing out to the night sky. Although she sounded concerned for Irvine, he knew well that she was more bothered by her own problem with Squall. He sat down beside her and patted her head as he'd done all day, "Don't Rin, it's gonna be okay. Don't worry so much." He added with a wink.

With a small smile, Rinoa nodded as she'd also done all day in response to Irvine's soothing words. She knew he surely grew annoyed with the situation but had an awful time shaking off the feeling. Just as the two sat there wallowing in their own problems, a knock sounded at the door.

Irvine leapt to his feet, "Selphie!" He cried out excitedly.

"I don't think so, Selphie would just walk in." Rinoa replied calmly. She slowly came to her feet and advanced to the door curious to who stood behind it. Her mind decided it could be no other than Seifer ready to plead for forgiveness. With her mind already made up, when she opened the door to Squall she felt ready to faint from absolute shock. "Sq-Squall?" She gagged.

Immediately hearing this, Irvine silently closed Rinoa's bedroom door allowing the two of them privacy.

Rinoa stood in shock waiting for something to happen to break the awkward silence. Squall stood before her, looking rather neutrally as usual. She couldn't stop her incessant blinking until finally Squall spoke up.

"Hi." He said flatly. Still not speaking much in reply, Rinoa held the door open and gestured allowing Squall inside. He took a few steps before stopping short and turning around to Rinoa, close behind. "I—"

"Here." Rinoa thrust Squall's lion engraved ring into his palm. "I know that must've been what you came to talk to me about this morning, and probably right now too. I know I've wasted a lot of your time, so just take it. I'm sorry I've had it so long."

Taken aback Squall looked in his palm in quiet. He didn't say anything, just kept his eyes fixated on the silver loop gleaming gently in the light of the dorm. Finally, he returned to look at Rinoa who bashfully and embarrassedly faced the ground, hanging her head as if waiting to hear of her execution. "Keep it."

"But, didn't you come for that?" Rinoa uttered flabbergasted.

"Not really, I came actually to tell you what I wanted to say earlier today," He met Rinoa's shy gaze and smiled, "That I had a great time with you last night." Still grinning his placid smile, Squall leaned in towards Rinoa. Very carefully, he brushed his lips against her cheek and left a small kiss. He stepped away and looked away not observing Rinoa's astonished look. "Good night Rinoa." With that, he swept passed her and let himself out.

Irvine cracked the door open and observed his swooned friend who'd now sunk onto the floor. He smiled as one problem had ended, he'd have to await his miracle tomorrow.

_"I'd rather be a blind moth"  
__-Karl Pilkington _

Sorry for the wait! Bare with me _


	33. Chapter 32

_"Genki ni shiteru nara,"_  
_("If you are fine,")_

_Beautiful World_  
_Chapter Thirty-Two_

The weekend finally passed without another interesting event occurring. However all the events at the Inauguration Ball left plenty for the students to gossip about. Instructor Trepe never found gossip entertaining in the least bit, but due to her massive exposure to her students, she couldn't help but to hear it. Normally little retained in her mind, but since the ball Quistis became increasingly worried one of the rumors would include her.

Her students gathered in class and took their seats whispering to each other. Instructor Trepe shook her head, gossips might be concerning, but she had far bigger problems to worry about. As though fate wanted to play a mean tease on her, her problems walked through the door as she thought of them. Seifer and Squall entered, fully dressed in their SeeD uniforms.

Once the entire class settled down, Quistis hesitantly stood up and began. "To start, I would like to congratulate all that participated in the SeeD exam," To this, Baku waved his hand to rest of the class proudly. "We're fortunate to have two of our passing SeeD candidates in our class today. Squall, Seifer, please come to the front and address your fellow classmates." Quistis continued. Nervous about even looking either in the eye, she remained professional as both gentlemen appeared at the front of the room. "Now, who would like to go first?"

"Naturally Instructor," Seifer began, "I'd love to share my wisdom with you and all of the rest first." He smirked with a sly glance at Quistis.

"Squall," Instructor Trepe said immediately looking to her other student, "are you alright with that?"

Squall, as normal, didn't reply hastily. "Instructor, do I have to give a speech? I didn't prepare anything."

Not sure how to react, Quistis looked from Seifer, who looked overjoyed at Squall's lack of preparation, back to Squall who stared at her dully. She cleared her throat and calmly responded, "I'm afraid so Squall, it's obligatory of all new SeeDs. Seifer will give his today, and you may do so next class, but I expect it no later than the beginning of next class, do I make myself clear?"

"Yes Instructor." Squall nodded.

Seifer yanked Squall's shoulder roughly, "Don't get too intimated by the pure genius that will be my speech, Pretty Boy. It's alright we all don't expect much from you anyways."

"That's enough Seifer." Quistis stated no longer facing either of them.

Squall shook Seifer's grasp off him as roughly as it previously was grabbed and calmly returned to the back of the classroom were he normally sat. Seifer turned to watch Quistis also return to her seat behind her desk. She didn't grace him with another look, but Seifer decided she wanted to remain subtle.

He turned to the rest of the class pleased to start.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''

In Instructor Akii's class, Irvine stood up, speech in hand ready to address his own class. He smiled brightly, "Good to see ya'll!" He started cheerfully. "So like, the exam, it's nothing if you really concentrate." He rubbed the back of his neck as he looked down at his paper, "I learned something though, from my Squad Leader. I gotta say, he's normally the guy I try hardest ignoring and not taking too seriously, but he said something to me that was pretty awesome."

Irvine gazed at his classmates, some bored, some self loathing that they weren't standing where we was, others actually interested. Amongst those sat Rinoa, genuinely curious as she knew Irvine's Squad Leader was Seifer.

"He said to me, that fighting isn't just fighting. It has a cause, a purpose." Irvine smiled to himself remembering well that he'd excluded the sprinkle of insults Seifer placed in his sentiment. "When you're fighting, you're always defending someone, and it makes every swing of your sword worth it. Well in my case, every bullet I shoot, heh. Anyways, it got me thinking; it feels good to think that. I know at the time the only people I was defending was my team members," Irvine breathed in meeting Rinoa's eyes again who looked thoughtfully at him. Other students, especially the girls watched him longingly hanging on to his every word. He took a moment to think about what thoughts crossed his mind when Seifer told him these words, Selphie.

"But eventually you might find yourself defending someone you really care about. When that time comes, you'll want to be ready. So if you really think like that, no battle seems trivial, or even difficult— it just seems worth it."

'''''''''''''''''''''''

"Although I still think that guy is an idiot not worthy of calling himself a fighter, after all, anyone can shoot— it seemed he actually listened to what I had to say. When you get yourself to vocalize your own thoughts, you think about them yourself a lot harder." Seifer smiled confidently as he observed the classmates that obviously had grown bored with his insult littered speech. He looked back at Instructor Trepe; "It made me realize that if you can put your life in danger in battle to defend someone, then you can be brave to take on challenges for yourself."

In the back of the room, Squall listened surprisingly intuitively. Despite the fact he could barely stand Seifer, somehow he seemed to say something sounding somewhat wise.

Instructor Trepe slightly blushed as Seifer bowed his head to the class, pleased to receive their applause. "You may take your seat Seifer." Quistis said quietly. "Now class, let's get on to the rest of what we needed to learn today!"

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

"That was a beautiful speech Irvine! I can't believe that was Seifer you quoted," Rinoa ranted as the two of them walked out of class.

"Yeah, doesn't matter, Akii is totally going to fail me on that assignment for not kissing his ass about how I couldn't have done without him teaching me and blah, blah, blah." Irvine laughed.

"A small mention in the beginning could have remedied that buddy. Maybe if you go now and thank him he'll overlook it." The two carried on down the hall joking about the different girls who had spent the entire time goo-goo eying Irvine devotedly the whole speech through. "So," Rinoa started in a suddenly somber tone, "I take it you were thinking of Selphie that whole time, right?"

Irvine hung his head watching his feet step, left to right, left to right. "She's gotten really good at avoiding me." _Or she's with Nida…_ Biting his lip hard, Irvine did the best to quickly shun out the mental image of Nida intimate with Selphie.

"Maybe she's with Nida." Rinoa said frankly.

_How did she do that? _The cowboy's eyes shot widely open towards Rinoa appalled with her ability to voice his very thought.

"I didn't intend that to be mean, I just thought that maybe he knows where she is or why she's avoiding you." She turned to him with a sincere look in her eyes, "At the very least you try making sense of what happened after the ball."

He didn't like the idea in the least bit, more so afraid of what he might find out, but it was more productive that than moping about it.

''''''''''''''''''''''''

When class ended, Instructor Trepe knew it came time to face the music. She watched Squall walk down the aisle, unconcerned. "Squall," Her lips moved without her mentally ready to even speak to him.

"Yes Instructor?" He replied monotonously.

"Make sure you have your speech next class, alright?" She spouted unsure of what else to say. Squall nodded and walked out allowing Baku along with two other girls approach her desk, more infamously known as the Trepe Groupies.

"Oh Instructor Trepe, that was a lovely lesson!" One of the girls said ecstatically while the other two students nodded with just as much enthusiasm. "We know you must have a lot of post exam work to take care of so we thought we'd come and help you."

Quistis noticed Seifer standing behind the small group, she turned back to them with a polite smile, "Yes I'd appreciate that very much but if you would be so kind to wait outside for a few moments, I need to speak to someone."

The three turned around eyed Seifer. One approached him and said, "Try smiling a bit when you address the Instructor." Baku came from behind her and added, "Yeah and don't get any funny ideas, just cause' you're alone!" The last member piped in, "You're looking at us like we're crazy Seifer but we all know you're a secret Trepie too! I mean you spend an awful lot of time with Instructor Trepe, you are sooo lucky!"

Seifer stared at the three of them so darkly and angrily he seemed ready to bite the next one who spoke.

"Baku, Lena, Narissa, please a few moments of privacy?" Instructor Trepe called out a bit more sternly saving them from Seifer's forming wrath.

"That's Number 1, 2, and 3 my lovely Instructor!" Baku corrected. Quistis eyed him with irritated glare. The three finally bowed respectfully to their Instructor and walked out.

After the three of them were gone, there stood Seifer wearing his conventional sly smirk. He stepped closer to her desk and leaned a hand on the corner. "Privacy huh?" He chuckled. "Anyways, I've had a rough weekend, let's talk some eh? Or something else if you prefer." His smile was so sly and flirtatious Quistis had a hard time telling if he it was kind or evil.

Quistis breathed in deeply, she didn't like what she was about to say, but Seifer's current behavior only proved it was the right thing to do. She pulled out a sheet of paper and slid it over the desk to Seifer.

Raising an eyebrow, Seifer realized whatever was on the paper, it couldn't be good. He carefully lifted it and read it aloud. "Dear Quistis, I once again want to congratulate you on your high rate of success of having three students attend the SeeD exam, and two pass. As you've taken on much this semester, I have decided in light of Seifer Almasy's accomplishment of passing his examination, it no longer seems necessary for him to receive afternoon sessions with you due to his behavior. As it is, we've heard less and less of Almasy's disruptive actions and even the Disciplinary Committee has become more tame and acceptable to faculty. I believe this to be a result of your excellent work, and I therefore am—" Seifer looked up and met eyes with Quistis, "am releasing you of this obligation?"

Instructor Trepe stood up and faced Seifer, "It's for the best Seifer. Believe me."

Seifer crumbled the paper and tossed behind him, "I've just been an **obligation **to you, haven't I?"

"Seifer, surely you don't think that…"

"If it's not true, then the letter doesn't change anything."

"Seifer, please listen to me. Things are becoming steadily more complicated between us."

"So it is true then?" Seifer's voice grew increasingly more aggressive.

"You're not listening are you?" Quistis shouted.

"You listen to me!" Seifer snapped back taking Quistis by surprise. "I know this was your job from the beginning but if you dare try bullshitting to me saying that's all it is still—" He grasped her wrist tightly, "Look me in the eye and tell me that's all I am to you, your **obligation**!"

Instructor Trepe looked at Seifer meekly, maybe one day she'd thank herself for doing what she was about to do, but right now— she utterly hated herself. "I'm your Instructor Seifer, that's how it needs to remain. You no longer have after class sessions to attend with me. You're dismissed."

Seifer looked at her with such cold eyes, she felt he might kill her in this very moment. Instead, he let go of her wrist and stormed out. Quistis watched his exit, defeated. She slowly returned to her desk and sat herself down massaging her temples to prevent any tears from falling.

"He seemed to be in a bad mood," Laughed one of the female Trepies, Narissa.

"Probably still upset about his breakup." Responded the other female, Lena.

Instructor Trepe looked at them suddenly. "Break up?" She asked instantly.

"Yeah, right after the Ball, his girlfriend dumped him. I heard it straight from my roommate who saw the whole thing." Baku explained.

"Why? What happened?" Quistis continued almost pleading her students to indulge her in the gossip.

"Well—" Lena said, obviously the most informed of the three. She sat against the edge of Instructor Trepe's desk and relayed all she knew of the current gossip. "What I heard from Amy, one of the Library Committee girls is that Seifer Almasy came to the ball with his girlfriend Rinoa Caraway, **but **he left early."

Instructor Trepe's heart stopped, had her fear of someone discovering them and pulling her into the grapevine actually come true?

"Anyways, Rinoa still hung out at the ball for awhile, she was like the last girl to leave. She went to go meet up Seifer and he tells her to beat it for the night! Afterwards he went and met up with Scarlet, who was actually at the ball with Irvine Kinneas, and left with him. Anyways Rinoa came to see Seifer in the morning and she found that he spent the night with Scarlet, mainly because she was still in there. Shameful I know! Aaanyways, she totally dumped him on the spot. He's probably still angry about it."

Quistis lay back in her chair. The school's gossipers knew that Seifer's first girl of the night was Rinoa, and his last Scarlet, what they didn't know there was someone in the middle. She didn't know quite how to react or feel, hurt? Whatever mix of disappointment and pain began to take occupancy in her mind, she no longer felt guilty about the selfish man who she just sent out of the room.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Even though Irvine still had his doubts about if he truly wanted to know what lay beyond Nida's door, he knew it had the potential to bring some peace of mind. He hesitantly raised his hand to the door and let his knuckles gently knocked.

Promptly, Nida answered the door. He stood shocked when he saw who'd come to visit, "K-Kinneas?" He blurted. "What the devil are you doing here?" He stammered finally showing his unhappiness to see him.

"Is Selphie here?" Irvine asked quietly.

Instead of replying, Nida pushed his door full open and dragged his feet back into his room. He sat on his bed and threw his arm out gesturing to the empty room, "Well, you tell me Kinneas." He said finally. Quietly sighing he turned back to Irvine and added, "Not that I intended to bring her here though."

"Have you seen her since the ball?" The cowboy continued in his same quiet voice.

"If only I were so fortunate, my assumption made me believe she'd run off to your dorm for the night." Nida grumbled bitterly.

Irvine entered the dorm and leaned against the wall facing Nida who sat on the bed with his face in his palms. "Well, not that I really feel like assuring you, she didn't do that. I haven't seen her since the ball either."

"Well if you only came in seeking Selphie, as you can see, she's not here." Nida said.

"Fine, you'll just have to answer me then. What happened with you two?" Irvine looked at Nida coldly.

"Not that I actually believe it concerns you in the least bit, I suppose no harm can come of telling you, since I myself can make little sense of it." Nida faced Irvine and sat up straight. "Well from the beginning of the ball, I knew— or felt that Selphie regretted coming with me, and that she'd much prefer being with you. She spoke about you almost anytime she said anything, and when you came to ask her to dance, she didn't even **look** at me for approval. When I came to have a dance, she was so obviously upset to be my dancing partner versus yours. I felt hopeful for the of the night though, after a little dancing she seemed to be enjoying herself, but then I feared she may have just been humoring me. After we left the ball, we walked around the courtyards, and I had been under the assumption for a little that she might've actually been enjoying my company, so I dared to ask her for a kiss. Then you of course showed up, and she ran off again not giving me a second glance."

Irvine thought for a moment, "So when did she start crying?"

"There you go again, you mentioned that then too, what in blazes do you mean?"

"She was crying Nida, you didn't see that?"

"Of course Kinneas, because this is the reaction of someone who noticed."

Irvine stood up straight, glad of the little information he learned, however still upset he hadn't spoken to Selphie in days. Was she taking care of her injury with Dr. Kadowaki? Was she hurt? Angry? "Thanks Nida." He said flatly as he made his way to leave.

"Irvine wait." Nida called. Back still turned to him, Irvine obeyed. "Please, just tell me, why? Why when you are the envy of nearly every man in Garden, the desire of almost every woman, why did have to make your mark on the only girl I had the courage to ask out? Have I wronged you?"

"I'm sorry Nida, really man. It's nothing against you, I'm sorry it didn't work out with you and Selphie." With that, the cowboy walked out without another word of explanation.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Rinoa knew she'd find him in Training Center, it was almost a sure thing. Although she knew it, when she finally came across Squall her heart still fluttered in excitement and surprise.

When he saw her, he sheathed his sword and approached her. Rinoa was unfamiliar to this behavior of his, but she certainly welcomed it. "Hi," She started sheepishly. Nervously, she held out her hand, "I don't know what happened to your sister, but I know that she must mean a lot. I couldn't keep this all to myself, it's too selfish." With that, she gently returned Squall's ring to him. "Anyways, I just wanted to give that back to you, I guess I'll leave you to your training." She turned away and began to trot along upset her encounter was already over. In her mind, she'd planned out a much longer version of this.

"She didn't pass away." Squall stated loudly causing Rinoa to halt in her steps. She turned around watching Squall come closer to her. "She didn't pass away at all, but she might as well have."

Rinoa looked at him thoughtfully, her eyes full of interest. "Go on Squall, talk to me. That's what I've always wanted from the beginning."

Squall met Rinoa's eyes, "She was like that too, Elle—" He turned to the ground, "Ellone."

"Sorceress Ellone?" Rinoa repeated surprised.

"She was there for me, even when my parents weren't. I told her I wanted to grow up and be her knight, but I failed her. When she was gone, I never wanted to let someone I cared about down again. I've done a good job, till now." Squall raised his eyes to Rinoa again, "You're so persistent— you remind me of her. I was always quiet, but it didn't stop her from trying. You even look a little like her."

"Squall…" Rinoa uttered softly.

He swept passed her facing the ground again, "She's gone now, there's a reason you never hear about her anymore. They locked her up, to contain her powers, and I didn't do a thing about it." He stayed quiet for a moment, as if decided whether he wanted to say anymore. "I don't want to get close to someone else and fail them again. When you were hurt during the exam, I didn't even know how to react."

Squall turned around to find Rinoa right in front of him. She smiled and gazed into his amazing storm colored eyes, getting lost in their intensity and hidden passion. "Ellone wouldn't have wanted you to suffer like this, she loved you. You should give someone else that chance too." Gently Rinoa laced her arms around Squall's neck, "Heartbreak, sadness, it's what makes us realize what love and happiness are and how great they are."

"I shouldn't have done that last night, you have someone Rinoa, I might hate the guy, but it doesn't mean you should break his heart." Squall said quietly seemingly unsure of how to react to Rinoa's proximity.

"Don't worry about Seifer, he's not mine." Rinoa loosened her grip sensing Squall unease. "But if you'll let me, I'll be yours."

Squall gingerly rested a hand on Rinoa's waist. A moment passed as Squall felt confident enough to rest his other hand on her back. He pressed his head to Rinoa's and sighed, "I don't even feel like I have a choice anymore." Their lips touched.

After a long relationship that ended horribly, Rinoa felt more than content, happy and relaxed in Squall's arms. For this moment, she didn't feel ashamed and abashed that her only boyfriend cheated on her, she didn't care what any person thought of her.

Perhaps for the first time, Squall didn't care either.

_Love is everything it's cracked up to be…It really is worth fighting for, being brave for, risking everything for._

_-Erica Jong_


	34. Chapter 33

_"Betsu ni ii kedo"_  
_("Then that's good I guess")_

_Beautiful World  
__Chapter Thirty-Three_

Another day gone and passed….

Selphie turned to her side and watched the hands of her chocobo clock that sat on her nightstand. The small-animated bird always made Selphie smile, as it was small gift from Rinoa, who stated it reminded her of Selphie, and therefore knew she must have it. The brightly colored hands ticked over the cartoon printed numbers, Selphie watched. Although she had stared at the clock for over five minutes, she didn't have the slightest idea of what time it was.

The night before, Rinoa told her Irvine really wanted to speak to her. Not trying to be rude to Rinoa, but Selphie tried to avoid her as well. Every time they encountered each other for a few short minutes in the beginning of the day and right before bed, Rinoa tried to convince her to go see Irvine.

Selphie didn't exactly know why she feared confronting Irvine, or even Nida. Irvine never showed any real signs of aggression towards her, and a simple explanation to Nida would solve their issue. Still, Devin never showed signs of violence towards her… until **the** night.

After watching the hands return to the top completing another rotation, Selphie finally flung her legs off the side of her bed, careful not to land her injured one too hard. She sat up and looked out the window, the sun shone brightly through the clear glass.

Since the day after the ball, she'd told Instructor Trepe and Headmistress Edea that she didn't feel well enough for class. The two didn't pressure her to hurry and return, as they too relish some free time. Instructor Trepe in particular knew why Selphie felt the way she did and seemed even more sympathetic. Day two of no class, day three of avoiding Irvine.

Selphie slipped on her school uniform and ran a brush through her hair before slipping on her school boots and heading out the door. Angelo sat bored wandering the room alone, telling Selphie Rinoa must've left for class already.

Normally that upset Selphie, knowing all her friends were already busy, but today she knew it meant generally the whole school would be empty. She decided she'd take a nice walk to clear her mind.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Seifer didn't feel like showing up to class, but worse than showing up to class would be not showing. He knew that Instructor Trepe would feel uncomfortable under his glaring eyes, and he would enjoy every minute of it. As he came closer to his class, he noticed a large group standing outside of the door.

"What's going on here?" Seifer asked irritably.

Baku, standing on the sidelines of the crowd answered promptly, "Instructor Trepe posted on her door that she's not going to show up for class, so it's canceled. We're supposed to have recorded dueling match plus a paper about Esthar's security policies with another student by next class though."

Frustrated, Seifer clicked his tongue. _Too scared to face me eh? _A wry smile touched his lips.

"You... want to duel Seifer?" Baku asked reluctantly.

"Shoo fly, don't bother me." Snapped the blonde.

Seifer turned on his heels, now gritting his teeth. He didn't really understand just why he was so anxious, but regardless he felt eager and annoyed. Perhaps challenging Pretty Boy to a match would ease him out. He would've taken up Baku on his offer, but knowing just how incompetent he was as a fighter he didn't feel like wasting his time with him.

Just then, Zell walked down the hall, arms linked with a girl whose hair set cutely in one pigtail. The tattooed blonde looked very cheerful whistling a happy tune, his cheery attitude irritated Seifer all the more. "Morning Seifer." He greeted as he passed.

_That is it! _Seifer yanked Zell's shoulder causing him to turn around, and while Zell still appeared rather stunned, Seifer fisted his hand and punched Zell as hard as he could manage.

Completely taken aback, Zell slipped clean off his feet. His cheek where Seifer landed his blow turned a blazing red. Zell covered his hit behind a large hand as he looked up to Seifer who stood belligerent ready to land another hit. Seifer wasn't a gifted fist fighter like Zell, but if Chicken Wuss showed initiative to fight back he'd be happy to unsheathe his gunblade. "The hell? You son of a bitch!" Zell flipped backwards and landed loudly on his feet.

"Zell! You're going to get in trouble!" Cried out the girl he'd come with.

"The hell is your problem Seifer?"

"Your attitude pisses me off Chicken Wuss."

"You want a fight man? I'll give you one!"

Zell stood straight out of his fighting stance and noticed the crowd that had now gathered around them. He certainly didn't want to back down from a challenge from the infamously arrogant Seifer Almasy, but right after making SeeD he didn't want to stain his clean student record. "Let's take this outside then." Zell said finally.

Seifer squinted his eyes and nodded in agreement. He raised an arm in the air and snapped loudly, "Fujin! Rajin!" As if somehow magically, a moment or two later from the crowd of students, Seifer's posse emerged and appeared at his side. "By order of the Disciplinary Committee, anyone who's not in their class in the next five seconds will be punished!" The crowd scattered immediately not willing to wait around and find out just what Seifer meant by 'punishment'. Once all of the students had disappeared, Seifer turned back to Zell "Shall we?" He taunted evilly.

''''''''''''''''''''''

Selphie rested herself against the edge of a fountain feeling the sprinkling of splashing water on her back. The sound of the trickling water sounded soothing, but amongst it, Selphie vaguely heard someone sniffling, as though crying.

She came to her feet and walked around the fountain until she found the source of the crying. Directly the opposite of where Selphie had been sat Instructor Trepe. Her hands and tissue covered her face while she sat elegantly quietly trying to hush her cries.

"Instructor Trepe?" Selphie called surprised.

Immediately, Quistis jolted her head upright. As soon as she saw Selphie she rushed a tissue to wipe her cheeks, "Oh Selphie— I didn't hear anyone come out here." She blew her nose and rubbed her eyes trying to hide her weeping as best she could.

"Don't you have class?" Selphie asked confused.

"I just don't feel up to the task today," Instructor Trepe said quietly. "I'm sorry you had to see me like this. I'm rather ashamed."

"It's okay." With a smile, Selphie took a seat beside her Instructor. "I mean everyone cries. So what's wrong? Did you get hurt?"

"Well you could say that…" Instructor Trepe replied with a small chuckle, laughing at Selphie's sweet naivety. "Please don't worry about me, you should go on now." She said patting Selphie's shoulder kindly.

"I don't mind, I wanna help!" Selphie replied cheerfully remaining put.

"Well Selphie, I don't know if you can help." Quistis said returning a tissue to her eyes. "I've just had terrible luck with love. I'm afraid the advice I gave you the other day wasn't very wise. It doesn't matter if you find the confidence to say what you want to say. If it's not pleasant news it'll never be well received."

Selphie looked at the ground, it wasn't as though she'd avoided Irvine solely due to what Instructor Trepe had told her, but it certainly had helped!

"Just know Selphie, that difficult things, will always be difficult. You have to know whether you're willing to deal with it, regardless of the challenge." Instructor Trepe came to her feet, "For even if you're not willing to, tribulation has a way of finding you." With that, Quistis gently walked away back towards the Garden leaving Selphie to her thoughts.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''

As most students were in class, the entire Garden had several partially deserted areas to choose. Seifer and Zell decided to have their little battle in the Quad. Since the Student Festival committee had just finished with the SeeD Inauguration Ball, a small corner housed the remainder of the decorations leaving the rest of the Quad to Seifer and his challenger.

"Alright Chicken Wuss, let's have us a clean fight." Seifer said with a wink as he held his arm outstretched with his pointed gunblade shining in the sunlight.

"A clean fight with you? I've been dyin' for a chance like that!" Zell said pounding his fists together. He rushed forward hurling his gloved hand towards Seifer.

With a sly smile, Seifer stealthily dodged to the side and watched as Zell rush passed him. After Zell's back was exposed, Seifer held out his hand and whispered, "Fira". A cone of fire encircled the martial artist. When the flames subsided, Seifer saw Zell encased in a pink sphere; he chuckled behind the safety of his magic Shell barrier.

"Not bad Chicken Wuss," Seifer said quietly as he zoomed close enough to strike with his gunblade. Zell ducked fast enough to avoid most of the impact but still received a bit of a hit on his shoulder. He jumped on his knees and swept his leg around in attempt to trip Seifer.

Nimbly Seifer leapt away and snapped his fingers casting a Dispel to dissolve away Zell's annoying Shell. Now that he was sure that Zell couldn't protect against it, he called out again, "Fira!"

Zell held his hands together outward as the heat around him began to grow. From his fingers tips a shield shined. Seifer's eyes widened as he recognized the Reflect shield. The cone of fire bounced of Zell and attacked Seifer instead.

Irritated, Seifer brushed off the cinders, "Ugh— now you've really pissed me off Chicken Wuss." He pointed his index finger to him releasing a small fire on Zell's shoulder. While Zell clapped his hands to smother the flames, Seifer reared his equipped arm back and began spinning his gunblade. Once the blade started to spin, Seifer joined in and spun madly towards Zell.

After taking a massive amount of speeded hits from Seifer, Zell felt rather exhausted. Instead of kneeling down and letting Seifer giving his finishing blow, he dashed to Seifer and punched him hard in the face. While Seifer staggered from the blow, Zell followed up with a string of punches in his gut, and then flipped back to jump in the air and swing a kick across Seifer's face.

Seifer landed on the ground from the kick. He held and arms out to support himself on the ground as he muttered angrily. Wiping his mouth from the oozing blood, he looked to Zell who stood a few feet away from him, wavering from foot to foot. "You marked up bastard!" Seifer croaked as he came to his feet once more. He thrust his sword across Zell's chest and banged the hilt against his head.

As Zell grasped his head, he noticed Seifer's fading focus. He began to fall weakly but as he did, he swept his leg once move tripping Seifer and taking him down with him.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Rinoa bit her lip as she tried her hardest to pay attention to Akii's incredibly dull lecture about the first Lunar Cry. Instead, she couldn't get her mind to stop replaying her memory of being in the Training Center the day before with Squall. She never imagined something going so incredibly perfect with him.

She rested back in her chair and looked to her neighbor, Irvine. His face looked distraught, and Rinoa knew it most likely had little to do with the illustration of monsters Akii had just pinned on the board. She knew Irvine was still upset about not talking to Selphie, however she didn't have the slightest what to do about it. She'd told Selphie every time she saw her to go see him, she even told her how to get to his new dorm. Whenever she did, Selphie simply gave her an uneasy glance and nodded.

Speaking of lack of confrontation, Rinoa hadn't spoken to Seifer since she broke up with him. She didn't feel she owed anything to him, and certainly didn't want to face him again. However, deep down Rinoa felt she needed to say something— find out what happened. The idea of talking to Seifer at all, however, made her angry, but she couldn't fight the feeling that she needed to, for her sake.

Still listening to the long story full of droll dates and even more droll names, Rinoa prayed the class to end. Instead, Amy, the girl Rinoa recognized as a prominent member of the Library Committee rushed in panting.

"Instructor Akii! Can I please borrow Irvine and Rinoa?" She asked pleadingly. Akii looked at her bizarrely and with a shrug his shoulders he gestured at Rinoa and Irvine to go ahead and leave.

After the three exited the class, Amy looked to the two of them desperately, "Zell! I'm worried, he and Seifer got into a fight before class. They said they'd take it outside, but Zell hasn't come back yet! They looked really angry, both of them! I'm worried it might've gotten really serious!" She looked from Irvine to Rinoa and back again, her eyes watering up in worry. "You're his friends aren't you? I know Rinoa you're Seifer's ex, can you guys find out where they are?"

Rinoa and Irvine exchanged glances, both acknowledging the same thing: _Zell thinks __**we're **__his friends_? Shrugging, Rinoa rested a hand on Amy's quivering shoulder, "Don't worry Amy, we'll find them. Come on, there can't be that many places they could have gone to have a duel." All nodding in agreement, the three of them hastened down the hall.

Although Rinoa suggested they all should split up and look for them Amy seemed too frazzled for that kind of idea. So together, they checked the 2nd floor deck, the Training Center, Parking Lot, and lastly the Quad.

When Amy spotted the two students face down unconscious both bleeding, she screamed shrilly. Rinoa and Irvine looked at each other unsure of what to do. "Rin, you go with Amy and tell Dr. Kadowaki, I'll try dragging them over to the Infirmary." The cowboy stated finally after pondering for a few moments.

Rinoa nodded and grabbed Amy's hand dragging her behind.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Seifer groaned as he rubbed his head. Zell's last kick left him with the world's worst migraine. Slowly blinking to adjust to the bright lights of the infirmary, Seifer raised his volume as if to let someone know he'd awoken.

"I'm tired of seeing you here Seifer." Came a voice Seifer knew only too well.

_I hate seeing you too Doc._ "But Doc, I thought I've become your favorite patient." Seifer uttered not able to talk too loudly due to the wind knocked out of him when Zell combo punched his abdomen. He heard Dr. Kadowaki chortle in response. Gradually, Seifer propped his arm behind him and raised himself into a sitting position. He was in Dr. Kadowaki's office lying on a cot behind her desk. Across the infirmary, Seifer saw a half closed curtain of one of the examination rooms where he could see a small group surrounding the cot inside. No doubt Chicken Wuss's cot.

"That Dintch did a real number on you, didn't he?" Dr. Kadowaki turned to him and furled her small eyes, "Relax, from the looks of it you dealt more damage." She went back to her paperwork. "So how do you feel?"

_Like shit, I guess I know why Chicken Wuss made SeeD_. Seifer rubbed his head with the hand that wasn't supporting him. He gazed at the articles in front of Dr. Kadowaki, files, papers—and something he never usually saw on her desk, a decoration. Incredibly dutiful to her job, Dr. Kadowaki didn't bother herself with frivolous decorations. As many times as Seifer had come into the infirmary, he was well aware of that.

He blinked a few times getting a good look of the item. It was simple rectangular picture frame. The picture it contained had three people in it, Dr. Kadowaki in the middle, Instructor Trepe to her right, and to her left—

"Pretty boy?" Seifer said aloud shocked at the picture. The three of them looked jovial and cheery, he'd never witnessed Squall like that. As far as Seifer could tell, Dr. Kadowaki, Squall, and Instructor Trepe were in a chain of half hugs. When was Squall so affectionate?

"Pretty Boy?" Dr. Kadowaki repeated turning to Seifer. She noticed Seifer looking at something passed her. Turning around, she spotted the picture frame Seifer obviously referred to. "Ah yes, he is a pretty boy isn't he?"

"Why do you have a picture of Squall?" Seifer asked almost growling, angrier that Instructor Trepe was in the picture with him looking as cheerful as she did.

Dr. Kadowaki stayed quiet as she looked at the picture carefully. After a few silent moments of inspection she finally said, "He does look an awful lot like Squall doesn't he?" She stroked the face of the frame gingerly with a sad look in her eyes, "I'd be happier if it was Squall, as Squall is still around here. This is Levi, a former SeeD and student here— plus of course Quistis' old boyfriend." She turned back to Seifer with a rare smile touching her wrinkled lips. "Levi was Quistis' senior, a real sweet boy. The two of them were so close. They were determined to be SeeDs together. Even though Quistis managed to skip a grade he was bright as ever and passed his first SeeD exam."

_Everyone's a critic, yeah I get it— I failed the exam once, maybe twice. _Seifer thought bitterly. "What happened to them?"

"Well Levi became a SeeD, and a few months later he was assigned on a mission. There was an accident, and Levi didn't make it." Dr. Kadowaki returned the frame back to its place on her desk. "I take this picture out around this of the year in his honor, he was truly a sweet boy. Quistis and him would always come visit me."

"He's dead?" Seifer asked shocked.

"Unfortunately, everyone who knew him felt terrible, but mostly Quistis. I wonder how she's doing today, last year she was in a terrible condition. I should go visit her soon to make sure she's doing well."

Seifer sat back as memories of Instructor Trepe flooded his mind suddenly making much more sense.

_Seifer flopped into a chair that sat in front of the desk, raised his legs onto the top of Quistis' desk and crossed them. "Yeah, is there a reason Pretty Boy is getting special treatment?" _

_"Honestly Seifer, I haven't the slightest what you mean." Immediately, Seifer scoffed. Quistis threw a sharp look to him and pursed her lips, "Seifer I do show leniency towards my students when they need it. It's not just Squall despite what you think." _

_"It's because he's pretty isn't it?" Seifer continued in his sardonic tone._

…

_"It's trivial, but you remind of me of someone— only sometimes that is." With that, Quistis briskly rose to her feet and moved around her desk closer to Seifer. She crossed her arms and leaned her waist along the side of the desk. "Just tell me, what's on your mind. I'm here to help you Seifer."_

…

"_Is there a reason we're coming here?" A man's voice sounded._

_"You'll see when we get there, else there'd be no point in coming out this far, no?" Explained a much softer feminine voice. The pair fell silent again as they continued to walk through the path. Finally, their figures came before their shadows and Seifer laid eyes on Instructor Trepe walking alongside Squall._

…

_Instructor Trepe had escaped from Seifer's grasp so quickly, Seifer didn't notice it even happen. She stood several feet away almost appearing embarrassed and flushed. "Squall, you made it. I didn't even see the time just slip away." With a small laugh, Instructor Trepe pushed a lock of hair behind her ear and smiled brightly at Seifer's nemesis. _

_Stiffly, Seifer walked over to Instructor Trepe and hissed, "You called him here?" _

_Returning Seifer's discourtesy, Instructor Trepe muttered back under breath, "Yes I did, are we not done here?"_

…

_Unlike her normal routine in which she sat behind her desk grading papers, she paced the classroom letting her hands glide over the study panels, gently and gingerly letting each of her long fingers stroke the smooth surfaces. Seifer watched for a while as he examined her smile that she wore the entire time. She paused at a certain study panel that Seifer knew all too well belonged to Squall. For several minutes, she stood there, her hands placed still, her back to Seifer. _

"_Instructor, what were you just doing?" He said finally before she spoke again._

_Quistis blinked and turned back to the rows of study panels, "Oh," she started with an embarrassed chuckle. She pushed back a long thick lock of her golden hair and turned back to the study panels. "I'm just— I'm just proud of my students. That's all." _

_"Proud of Pretty Boy?" Seifer added with a snort._

…

_"I thought you didn't dance, but you danced magnificently." She continued in her coddling voice. She stayed quiet letting a few moments of silent pass between them before speaking again. "Well I just wanted to say, now that you're a SeeD we won't see much of each other anymore. You'll only be leaving for missions. I think a proper goodbye is in order." _

_Another moment of silence passed before Squall spoke. "Goodbye." He said flatly._

_Quistis laughed gently and responded, "So frank with you. I had something else in mind. Do you remember that place I took you to when I told you you'd passed your written exam?" She paused waiting for some acknowledgement before continuing, "Well let's say you and I go there one more time?" _

_"Whatever— if you want. I don't see the point." Squall droned bored. _

_"I thought you wouldn't. Do it as a favor for me, if not a favor an order. It'll the last order from your instructor." _

"…"_  
"Please Squall?"_

_"Well, I'll be there if you choose to come."_

Everything suddenly made sense. All her affections towards Squall, it was because he looked identical to Levi? "Did this Levi act a lot like Pret—I mean Squall?"

Dr. Kadowaki pondered for a bit, "You know, funny you should ask that. Quistis once asked me that very question. I honestly think they're polar opposites. I never noticed however- just how much they look alike."

Seifer blinked, he felt terrible. He'd taunted her and spent countless nights in bitter jealousy and anger because of her kindness towards Squall. He still hated Squall and his undeserved treatment of course, but right now, he could only think of how cruel he'd acted to Instructor Trepe the day before.

_Seifer looked up and met eyes with Quistis, "am releasing you of this obligation?"_

_Instructor Trepe stood up and faced Seifer, "It's for the best Seifer. Believe me."_

_Seifer crumbled the paper and tossed behind him, "I've just been an __**obligation **__to you, haven't I?" _

"_You listen to me!" Seifer snapped back taking Quistis by surprise. "I know this was your job from the beginning but if you dare try bullshitting to me saying that's all it is still—" He grasped her wrist tightly, "Look me in the eye and tell me that's all I am to you, your __**obligation**__!"_

_Instructor Trepe looked at Seifer meekly, maybe one day she'd thank herself for doing what she was about to do, but right now— she utterly hated herself. "I'm your Instructor Seifer, that's how it needs to remain. You no longer have after class sessions to attend with me. You're dismissed."_

"I got to go," Seifer said weakly forcing himself off the cot.

"You're in no position to get up quite yet Seifer." Dr. Kadowaki warned.

Seifer realized just how true that statement held once his feet hit the ground in attempt to support him. His entire body ached, but it'd have to wait, he needed to apologize to Instructor Trepe. He needed to see she was okay. He wrapped an arm around his aching middle and brushed Dr. Kadowaki off. "I'm fine." He mumbled as he slowly exited.

"Seifer?" Sounded another voice very different from Dr. Kadowaki. As Seifer had walked a few yards away from the infirmary, he slowly turned around to see Rinoa. "Seifer we've got to talk."

_That's for sure… _Seifer thought regrettably.

Rinoa approached closer letting the blonde see just how angry she appeared. She placed her hands on her hips and stared at him crossly, "For starters, why did you beat up Zell?"

_Is she blind? He beat me up too! No time for that though. _Seifer reached an arm out and rested it against Rinoa's shoulder. "Listen Rin, I know I don't have the right to ask this, but can we do this later?"

Rinoa said nothing quite yet, but she looked furious.

"I know I have a lot to explain to you, and you have every right to be mad, hell even hate me. Right now though, I really have something important to take care of. Please, can we talk later?" It might've been the effort of having to talk with what felt like a bruised diaphragm, or perhaps he genuinely looked sorry. Whatever it was, Rinoa's eyes softened and nodded.

Seifer grinned gratefully, turned around, and slowly headed down the hall.

'''''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine heard Rinoa return into the infirmary, obviously Seifer made a quick getaway. He turned his attention back to Zell who shuffled his head about. Amy, on the opposite side of Zell cupped her hands over her mouth in horror as she counted the numerous bandages Dr. Kadowaki placed over Zell's sword wounds.

Zell continue to shuffle uncomfortably until his eyes finally peeled open. He turned his head side-to-side trying to gain knowledge of his surroundings. "What the— where am I? What happened?"

"Oh Zell!" Amy cried out, "You and Seifer were fighting. I called your friends and we looked everywhere for you two. We found you—" She paused to hold back her tears, "We found you in the Quad unconscious!"

Still appearing confused, Zell turned to the side and discovered Irvine and Rinoa there nodding in agreement to Amy's testimony. "You called **them**?" He sputtered sounding almost embarrassed.

"Yeah you're welcome!" Irvine snapped back, unenthusiastic about Zell's lack of appreciation. With a small shrug he turned his cheek, "Amy should have called one of your other maaaany friends," He feigned a shocked face and swooped in closer to Zell, "oh wait! We are your only friends! Aw buddy ya shoulda told me ya considered me that close!" Teasingly, Irvine ruffled the blonde's spiky hair. Zell brushed away Irvine's hand and forced a stubborn smile of thanks to the pair.

"So care to tell us what happened Mr. Dintch? This is the first time you've been here, although I've seen Seifer a number of times." Dr. Kadowaki pushed back her glasses as she entered Zell's examining room. "So what was it? A challenge you couldn't turn down or just the desire to punch in his face?"

Zell chuckled, "I guess a little of both— but man that was some battle!" He punched his fists together, more weakly than normal. "I dunno what started it though, he just punched me in the middle of the hall, so I had to take him up on a fight."

Rinoa and Irvine exchanged confused glances.

"Anyways, I got to take him down with me didn't I? Doesn't matter, I know I gave that bastard a real run for his money. He's a damn good fighter that Seifer. I always thought he was all talk." Zell continued as he laid himself back down.

"I would never underestimate Seifer, he might be a regular, but he sends in kids like you all the time. I figured that's because he's a bully, but skill has to do with it I'm sure." Dr. Kadowaki said with a laugh. She pulled out a stethoscope and began to examine Zell.

Irvine stretch in boredom, "Hey I'm glad you're okay, but I'm going to take off. See ya."

''''''''''''''''''''''''

By the time Seifer reached Instructor Trepe's dorm, he'd become accustomed to his shallow breathing and sore mid section. He finally appeared to walk normally. However, he now faced a new dilemma. Here he'd arrived to Instructor Trepe's door but what would he say to her?

Impulsive actions were always a weakness of Seifer's; he'd play it by ear. That acknowledged he knocked on the door, hard. At first, there came no reply, so Seifer rapped against the door again even harder.

"Who is it?" Sounded a weak voice.

"It's Seifer," He began hesitantly, "We got to talk."

"Please leave me alone Seifer, I don't feel well."

Seifer groaned, as he didn't want to be caught begging to get into Instructor Trepe's dorm, he was already well known on the grapevine he imagined. He tried again to knock, "Instructor Trepe, let me in. I know— I know about Levi."

Behind the door came a bit of shuffling and finally the knob turned opening the door to Instructor Trepe, pale and puffy eyed. "What can I do for you then?" She asked quietly.

"Levi—" Seifer began unsurely.

"What do you want to hear about that?" She hissed back immediately, "What do you think you could even understand about it? You, a person who doesn't even respect relationships." Huffing, Quistis spun around walking back into the room. She paced for a short moment before sitting herself on the edge her bed and hanging her head to view the floor, "I don't know why you came here Seifer, but if you're here to mock me or berate me, any other day will do."

Seifer watched glumly as his confidence fell. "Instructor Trepe," he started unsure of how to continue. _I knew I was playing this by ear from the start… _Seifer stepped inside the dorm and shut the door behind him causing Instructor Trepe to sit up straight and face him.

Her blue eyes glimmered as the shield of tears added an extra shine. After the moment of shock passed, she blinked and brushed away the forming tears. She squinted with irritation and stood up crossly, "What are you are doing?" She came to her feet and gestured towards the exit.

When Seifer didn't reply, she reached for the door, but as her hand met the knob, Seifer lashed out his hand and stopped her. "You've made me talk to you for hours, now you talk to me!" He faced her soberly meeting her tear-ridden eyes.

Quistis tried to return his gaze with more aggression, but her eyes slowly fell, and she grabbed Seifer's shirt as support from collapsing herself. Her entire body shook as she broke into sobs. Gradually loosening her grip on Seifer's shirt, she stepped backwards until she landed swiftly on her bed. She covered her face, her hands echoing and hollowing out the sounds of her cries.

Seifer couldn't believe his eyes, he'd always witness Instructor Trepe so relaxed, collected, and calm. Maybe not relaxed, but she always emitted a soothing aura relaying to all around her that she could handle anything and everything, they needed not to worry when with her. Who was this weeping before him?

"Please Seifer—" Instructor Trepe said weakly, "What did you come here for?" She rubbed her eyes and avoided facing him.

Playing by ear had at least got him here and not kicked out yet; continue with the flow Seifer thought to himself. He gently sat beside his Instructor and rested an arm loosely around her, "I came here to make sure you were okay. I— actually feel pretty bad about yesterday." Glancing to her profile, Seifer hoped to see her face, "I'm not here to irritate you, or even pick a fight. You can talk, that's why I came."

The two sat in silence for a while, only the sounds of Quistis trying to choke her sobs away echoed in the room.

Seifer used this time to think about what Instructor Trepe had just said to him, him a person who doesn't respect relationships. Instead of interrogating her and getting the answer clearly, Seifer thought it wise to leave her be and think for himself. How did Seifer not respect relationships? He'd only been in one, with Rinoa.

When he met Rinoa he fell for her hard. She was a pretty girl who actually cared about what he said; she'd spend hours listening to him as if he were a famous storyteller. They were 16 and classmates, falling for each other, so much that even though Squall was also their classmate, Rinoa never noticed him; Seifer cared little about him, at least noticeably. Seifer hated Squall since the day he came to Garden as a kid.

Rinoa was everything he wanted in a girl, kind and optimistic. She cared about him when it seemed no one else did. She accepted his rough attitude and embraced it. Seifer would never forget how happy he was as a 16 year old in love with Rinoa Caraway.

Maybe Rinoa no longer found Seifer's words empowering, maybe he no longer found her nosy antics cute, but whatever happened they grew incredibly bored with each other. For the past year, they remained together due to attachment, and neither of them thought it necessary to break up. Even if they weren't ecstatically thrilled with each other, they didn't hate one another either.

Then they met other people who met the qualities they found just as intriguing, maybe in ten fold. It pulled them even further apart, but for some reason they still didn't find the need to end their relationship with dignity. Rinoa spent as much time as she could with Squall, and Seifer made moves on Instructor Trepe. To truly make matters worse, he cheated on Rinoa, not with someone he even liked or knew.

Since the morning Rinoa broke up with him, Seifer felt irritable with Rinoa, but only now did he realize just how hurtful of an action he committed. Why didn't he just go back to his room alone? Why didn't he end it with Rinoa the first time Instructor Trepe almost kissed?

"Levi—" Instructor Trepe started suddenly.

Seifer shot his head back to her and out of his thoughts. He listened intently waiting for the next words to come passed her lips. She still hung her head miserably not actually facing him, but her soft no longer sobbing voice spoke again.

"I met him in the library when I was 15." A small gasped escaped, almost sounding like a choked laugh. "He wielded a katana, but he desired nothing more than to be a gunblade specialist. He loved them. We became friends so quickly."

At age 15, Seifer remembered Instructor Trepe was actually in his class. The next year she advanced a year further than everyone did, while he was held back and became classmates with Rinoa and Squall for the rest of his time at Garden.

"When we started dating, we planned to make SeeD together. I tried my hardest, but even with skipping a year, Levi managed to beat me." Instructor Trepe raised her head and smiled, "One of the smartest students in Garden. He was so bright, all our Instructors were sure he'd be successful in his first exam, and they were right."

"We wanted to see the world together, take on our SeeD missions side by side, graduate and start our life outside of Garden together." Turning her head to let Seifer actually meet her eyes, she continued softly, "Of course, that's not how it worked out."

She paused as her smile dissolved and pain returned to her glimmering eyes, "I was only a few months away from my SeeD exam… and Levi was assigned his first mission. I wasn't jealous of course, and even though I missed him sitting beside me in class encouraging me and telling me how every day I was becoming closer to making it, I thought by the time he returned I'd be a SeeD too." Her pace had quickened as if she needed to say the painful statements in one breath. "But he never came back…"

A tear glided down her reddened cheek, "Dr. Kadowaki called me in one day and told me he'd died in an explosion in Dollet. It wasn't supposed to happen, there was no way Levi could have even prevented it." She held her forearm before her eyes. "I thought everything was over with his life. My plans and dreams, they all fell short."

Seifer could see tears slipping passed Instructor Trepe's arm and falling off the side of her face. He gently grasped her arm and drew it away from her head, returning it to her lap. Instructor Trepe's eyes concealed themselves by her closed eyelids however.

"I didn't want to be a SeeD anymore. When Instructor Certification Examination came around, I took it, and became the youngest Instructor in Garden's history. I didn't care of course, none of it mattered. I just buried myself behind work, as much work as I could."

Instructor Trepe's voice broke; her hands cupped her mouth as her weeps echoed in her palms. Her fingers trembled as she held her eyes closed tightly. "Then **he** came along!"

Although his name hadn't been mentioned, Seifer knew well to whom Instructor Trepe referred. The eye of his envy, Levi's doppelganger, and now the new love in Rinoa's life, Squall Leonhart Loire.

"I knew he attended Garden, as he's President Laguna's son, but I never sought him out. When he showed up in my class that first day—" Finally opening her eyes, Quistis looked out dreamily as if imagining her classroom on Squall's and Seifer's first day of her class. "He looked just like him," She uttered quietly, "A gunblade specialist, like Levi always dreamt of being." Her voice grew in excitement, "I thought, now I knew this was the universe returning Levi back to me, but… I couldn't get Squall to give me the time of day, no matter how hard I tried. When you told me about Rinoa taking a liking to him and vice versa, I knew it was over. I didn't how to subtly go about it, but still I tried. ."

She finally looked Seifer in the eyes, "Because even I knew I didn't care much for Squall, I truly believed one day he'd turn around and become my Levi." She stood up, walked over to her nightstand, and held the framed picture of Levi and her to her chest. Her back turned to Seifer she finally said, "Levi is gone, and I've accepted it long ago. I suppose today just commemorates the end of my happier days."

"That's not true." Seifer spoke finally. Instructor Trepe turned around and looked at him questionably. He stepped towards her, his face sober and stern. "It's not the end—" His expression loosened to his sly smile, "In fact my dear Instructor, I think it's just the beginning." In the blink of an eye Seifer wrapped one arm behind Instructor Trepe's back, and the other on the back of her head. He stared into her shocked sapphire eyes and smirked. "Wouldn't you agree?"

Slowly he moved his head closer to hers, not rushing the moment as the tension between them grew. Instructor Trepe looked hesitant but showed no resistance as her lips gently met Seifer's, stimulating a kiss between them.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine walked towards his room bored, his hands stuffed into his pockets and his head hanging down watching his feet. At least one good thing came of today, he legitimately skipped class. Not that Irvine actually ever needed a reason to skip. As he'd made SeeD, he expected to miss out on countless more classes.

_Missions, ah it's going to be great! I get to see the world and—_ Irvine stopped in his thoughts realizing with missions he'd leave Garden for unpredicted amounts of time. A few days, weeks— maybe even months. He'd be leaving Rinoa, and more importantly Selphie.

His concentration broken, Irvine looked straight ahead expecting to see the door of his dorm, what he hadn't expected was to see Selphie leaning against it. "S-Selphie?" He gagged in surprise, "What're you doing here?"

The petite brunette pushed herself against the door landing flatly on her feet after a moment of swaying. She looked up at Irvine with happy endearing smile and brightly shining green eyes. "I missed you Irvy!" She rushed forward and leapt into his arms, Irvine catching her as easily as catching a doll.

"I missed ya too, what've you been doing?" Irvine asked finally after setting down his small friend.

Selphie danced from tip-toe to tip-toe, "Oh just classes," She answered sweetly. After fiddling a moment or two more, she stood still and faced Irvine with a slightly more serious face. _Not something she can pull off_, Irvine thought teasingly.

"I also wanted to talk to you, Irvy. I didn't wanna— because I was scared." She started in a small voice.

_Scared of me? Why would she be sca— oh Hyne if she's here to tell me Nida and her are dating now I will shoot him straight in the balls! I swear! _Despite his thoughts, Irvine remained calm and answered, "Scared of me? Don't be silly Sefie, you've never done anything to make me mad."

"So you're not mad about the ball?" She replied instantly.

The cowboy blinked a few times, _that was unexpected. _He rubbed the back of his neck and laughed, "Mad? That you went with Nida! Course' not, it was your choice at the end Selphie." He forced a chuckle.

"I thought when you saw me in the courtyard, you yelled so I thought that you were mad." Selphie looked away feeling stupid. She began to fiddle her feet again. "I bet Nida is too."

"You know, I don't think he is, I think he's just confused." _That's right, he's not mad at you Selphie, he's too busy fuming at me for attempting to steal his date. _"You know, I'm kinda confused myself. Do ya mind if we talk about what happened?" He gestured towards the door that he found Selphie leaning against earlier.

Selphie nodded obediently giving a quick grin as well, "Sure Irvy if you want to." She followed him as he opened his door and let her inside. Observing every wall, Selphie slowly walked through the room examining every difference there was. She finally sat herself on Irvine's bed.

Irvine smiled as she watched Selphie make herself comfortable in a small corner of the bed. She continued to gaze about the walls from her stationary location. A grin touched Irvine's lips as he took in the situation, Selphie and him alone in his private dorm. He'd only fantasized the things they'd do together when finally given the opportunity. Trying to push aside the images of his perverted mind, Irvine took a seat beside Selphie.

"So uh, what happened after you two left the ball?" Irvine asked finally.

Selphie pressed a finger to her lips as she thought aloud, "Well gee, nothing really. You know Irvy, Nida can talk a lot!" The two of them giggled at her statement. "We were walking around outside Garden just talking until Nida finally asked for a kiss. So I kissed him."

_So he didn't pressure her. Still, what kind of idiot asks for a kiss from someone he barely knows on their first date? _Ignoring his hypocritical thoughts, Irvine looked at Selphie hesitantly, "Why were you crying then?"

"He was hurting me." Selphie replied flatly.

_I WILL MURDER THAT BASTARD! SLOWLY AND PAINFULLY! _Irvine's jaw stiffened as his eyes bulged. "W-what did he do?" He said slowly holding back his temper.

Selphie gently laid a hand on her upper thigh, "He pressed really hard against here, and it just really hurt. I didn't get a chance to tell him that he was though," A small embarrassed laugh escaped her as she shut her eyes bashfully.

Breathing in deeply, Irvine calmed down. "Alright, so he didn't do anything wrong, right?"

Thinking again with a finger to her mouth, Selphie gazed upwards, "Nope, not that I can think of. But," She lowered her voice, "I hope he doesn't ask me out again. He's kind of boring. I think I would've had a lot more fun if I went with you Irvy."

Irvine beamed as the entire hypothetical night played in his head. He patted Selphie's head, "Yeah I think so too," he managed to say without revealing his full excitement from Selphie's statement. He scooted backwards until he was right beside Selphie, his head bent down close to hers. "I think you should tell him that too."

"Good idea Irvy!" Selphie said excitedly as she leapt off the bed. Irvine watched her shocked as she skipped to the door. "I'll talk see you later Irvy!"

_Good job Irvine, you idiot. _Irvine nodded his head frowning, although Selphie didn't notice. "Yeah, yeah later."

Please don't hate me...


	35. Chapter 34

_"Boku no sekai kieru made aenu nara,"_  
_("If I can't meet you before my world ends,")_

_Beautiful World  
__Chapter Thirty-Four_

Selphie didn't manage to find Nida, as she didn't know where his dorm was. Normally she'd always managed to encounter him in the Quad or Library. When she Nida wasn't found in either place, she reluctantly gave up. As she returned to her room, she thought about going back to Irvine's dorm, but she figured at that this point she might be bugging him. Shortly after arriving to her room, Rinoa came in.

"Hi there Rinoa, I talked to Irvy finally." She greeted cheerily.

Rinoa stopped and smiled, "Really? That's great, he'll stop being such a miserable lump now." She clasped her hands together and spun, "Oh I can tell him about my exciting encounter with Squall yesterday, and he'll finally actually pay attention!"

Selphie shrugged, "You could tell me if you want, tee-hee, I'll pay attention."

Taking in a moment to ponder, Rinoa tilted her head downward averting her eyes from Selphie. Finally, she plopped onto the ground with a grand smile. "Great! I'll tell you everything!"

Rinoa began babbling merrily about Squall, everything from the night at the ball, to the encounter at the Training Center. The entire time Selphie listened intently as though Rinoa spoke a mythical tale with magical creatures. The tiny brunette's eyes lit up as Rinoa dreamily explained her moments with Squall. She felt so enamored with telling the story that even the harsh feelings for Seifer came out softly and pleasantly.

After Rinoa concluded, she rested against the wall of the dorm staring up at the ceiling. "I still can't believe it happened," She said with a giggle. Her fingers laced about the silver ring that hung around her neck.

"Rinoa?" Selphie asked suddenly after having sat in silence for quite some time.

"Yes?"  
"Why do you like Squall?"

Blinking rapidly, Rinoa stared at Selphie bizarrely. Why did she like Squall? What an odd question she herself hadn't really asked. She ran a hand through her hair as she opened her mouth to reply, "I haven't really thought about it, not for awhile anyways. I used to try and make sense of it when I was still with Seifer." She smiled gently at Selphie and leaned in, "I know he's kind of stoic, but there's something really passionate about him— I can tell. He doesn't want people to know it, but you can see it in his eyes. When he speaks, when he fights… I remember Seifer's passion was something I fell for too."

Her second hand grasped her ring as well. "But with Squall, I don't mind just being the damsel in distress. I always felt like I was fighting Seifer for control, because he never seemed to give anyone a chance, but with Squall since he doesn't seem to care either, I see I never wanted it." With a last look dreamily upward, "I love how free I feel with him, how special he makes me feel when he lets me in to his secret world."

Selphie watched in awe as Rinoa's colloquy finally came to a stop. With Rinoa always busy and stressed with school, to finally see her talk about something that brought her so much peace seemed refreshing.

Instructor Trepe crying and Rinoa carefree, the world certainly seemed to work differently today. What next? Seifer becoming sensitive and kind? Selphie laughed, she knew Rinoa's ex boyfriend very little but from what she'd seen of him and heard of him from Irvine he never seemed anywhere near sweet, contrary to Rinoa.

''''''''''''''''''''''

Seifer stared at the ceiling, hesitant to utter a word. A fear ran through him telling him that he currently was envisioning a detailed dream, and if he spoke, it'd be his awakening.

_I kissed Instructor Trepe—is there a special place in hell for that kind of thing?_ He turned slightly on his side to glance at Quistis, who like him, lay silently on her back peering at the roof above them. Her eyes unfocused as they seemed lost in thought. _I wonder what she's thinking about…_

After Seifer kissed Instructor Trepe, they continued doing so for about an hour. Afterwards, they found themselves appalled and shocked and self-thrown on the bed. Even though it'd only been a few minutes of quiet stillness, it felt as though they'd been like this for hours.

_I did what I came to do; I wonder why I don't feel more proud of myself though. I probably caused enough damage here, maybe I should take off… _Seifer swiftly bounced himself off the bed and onto the floor without disturbing Quistis. He landed with a loud thud permanently breaking her of her concentration. She watched for a few moments as Seifer loitered for a moment while collecting himself, flattening his hair, patting his clothes straight and so forth trying to ignore his recent battle pains.

As Seifer began to head to the door Quistis sat up straight. She watched with her eyes pleading him to stop and turn around. _Enough Quistis, he can't see you and even if he could he deserves to hear something, he made the first move I should have the courage to follow it up! _

Seifer heard a small clatter. He turned around to see Instructor Trepe pressing her hand on the frame that showed Levi's picture, the face of the frame however was pointed down onto the nightstand. "Please don't go." She said quietly.

Gracefully coming to her feet, Quistis gave a small smile. Seifer stood motionless unsure if he should speak or just nod. Regardless of his thoughts, he simply stood there frozen as the elegant blonde floated towards him. She pushed a lock of hair behind her ear and came close to him.

"Instructor—" Seifer blurted as if to stop her.

"I think," His instructor replied with a hushed tone, "that it may be appropriate for you to just call me Quistis for now."

"Quistis." Seifer repeated with a smirk. As the name passed through his lips, the beckoned graced him with a kiss. With that small step forward, Seifer didn't find the need to leave again the rest of the night.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

The next morning, Irvine showed up to Rinoa and Selphie's dorm bright and early to see his two ladies off. After finally talking to Selphie the day before, Irvine found himself in a much cheerier mood.

He caught the two of them just in time to watch them scramble last minute preparations for the day. Rinoa ran about the dorm with one hand brushing her hair and the other attending to Angelo, who barked irritably for breakfast. Selphie on the other hand seemed a bit more relaxed than Rinoa. Her stack of books saturated with papers coming out from all ends was topped with her knunchuks, prepared for the day. The stack resided on the study table where Irvine had sat himself to watch the chaos that was a 'lady's morning'.

Selphie gazed into her mirror while Irvine watched her through her open door. She did a funny little dance, jumping tip-toe to tip-toe as she looked for anything off on her uniform. She ran a brush vigorously through her brown hair but the stubborn locks remained in their gravity defying style.

After she seemed satisfied with the way she looked, she took a seat beside Irvine and watched as Rinoa gradually calm down taking more time to pin her highlighted bangs back and strap her blaster edge onto her arm. She scooped a small collection of books under her arm and looked to her friends signaling she was complete.

"So you gals ready to take off?" Irvine asked tipping his cowboy hat to Selphie and Rinoa.

"Yep!" Selphie said excitedly as she began to pile her stack into her arms.

Just as they stood ready to leave, a knock sounded at the door. Irvine, whose hands were least full decided to open it. Behind the door surprisingly enough stood Squall. While Rinoa and Selphie looked ecstatic to see Squall, the cowboy looked dumbfounded and confused, as he hadn't heard anything since the night Squall showed up after the ball.

"Is Rin—" Squall began, as Irvine appeared to be too stunned to move out of his way.

"Squall!" Rinoa said quickly pushing her friend out of the frame of the doorway, "What're you doing here?" She smiled brightly, her happiness growing every second.

Squall looked cautiously over Rinoa's shoulder to her friends, the tiny brunette watching earnestly while the tall cowboy watched still awestruck. "I was going to see if— never mind." He began to turn around until Rinoa grabbed his arm.

"Wait, let's walk to class together."

Although Squall seemed somewhat hesitant to Rinoa's frankness, he did something Irvine knew he had never seen him do. He smiled. Wearing his small smirk, he relaxed his arm letting Rinoa link hers with him. After the two looked at each other comfortably for moment, they walked down the hall without another word.

Irvine watched, still in shock, watched them leave with his mouth agape. He did remember Squall's unusual kindness that night he came to Rinoa's dorm, but when did he become so public about it?

"Don't they look sweet together!" Selphie squealed as she hopped in place pointing in the direction the couple had walked off in. She leapt happily to Irvine, "Say Irvy are you going to walk with me to class?"

Squall and Rinoa did shock the heck out of Irvine, but it didn't keep him so far into his own mind that he'd ignore Selphie. He turned to her with a smile, surprisingly glad Rinoa walked ahead with Squall. "Of course, my lady." Tipping his hat, he bowed his head and gingerly kissed the top of Selphie's hand.

Selphie blushed as she watched her tall friend return to his upright stance. "Tee-hee," She giggled rubbing the skin Irvine's lips had made contact with, "let's get going?" She rushed back over to the stack of books with her Flail. As she scooted the heavy load into her arms Irvine appeared behind her.

"Let me take those, huh?" Irvine said quietly easily transferring the items into his own capable arms.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Seifer stretched his arms out as he opened his eyes to the light of morning. Yawning loudly, he turned to his side, shocked to see the bed empty. He blinked several times before he stared further forward to see Quistis' leg hiked up on a chair zipping up her boot.

She carefully returned her leg back on the ground, soundly as she didn't realize Seifer already awoke. Quietly, she patted her clothes checking for any imperfection on her uniform. Her hands ran through her silken gold her as she collected a handful of locks and pressed it to the back of her head, her other hand equipped with a pin.

"You know, I really think it looks better down." Seifer said sleazily with a yawn.

Quistis laughed gently as she locked the hairpin into place. Her hand smoothed the front of her head, "What you prefer may have mattered last night, but now it's time for me to head to class." She turned her head to him with a wink, "and that goes for you too."

Seifer returned on his back and laughed, "Perhaps I could find some sexy Instructor to write me a late pass, what do you say?"

She laughed elegantly and looked back into a mirror to assure herself her hair was perfect. "I didn't know there were any other 'sexy' instructors in Garden."

Realizing Quistis wasn't going to give him an easy out, Seifer leapt to his feet and grabbed his clothes. From the corner of his eye, he could see the elegant blonde watching him. A wind of haughtiness ran over him as he slipped his shirt over his head. Knowing here eyes were still on him, Seifer teasingly turned his back to her. He heard Quistis quietly scoff while her boots clicked against the ground as she too turned her back.

While Quistis stood away, unaware of Seifer, he swooped behind her and wrapped an arm around her waist. Quistis gasped as he spun her around and pressed his lips to hers. After their small kiss, Seifer rested his forehead to Quistis' and smirked, "I'll see you in class Instructor." He released her gently and quickly exited.

Quistis watched the door, as it swung closed after Seifer's leave. She sighed heavily and stepped over to her bed to sit and relax. The face down picture from the other day still lied on the nightstand. Seeing it look somewhat abandoned, Quistis felt a pinch of guilt. Her fingers hesitantly reached for it and brought it closer flipping it over to see the two and half year old picture of her and Levi.

"It seems the universe isn't going to bring you back to me after all." Her hand stroked the smooth glass leisurely. "But at least it brought me someone who I think makes me just as happy…maybe more?"

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

As Selphie and Irvine walked quietly down the hall to the main elevator at the center of the Garden, Selphie couldn't quiet her mind. Her heart still pumped excitedly from Irvine's kiss on her hand; on the other hand, she could still hear Rinoa's sentiments in her head.

"_I love how free I feel with him, how special he makes me feel when he lets me in to his secret world."_

"Irvy," Selphie started breaking the silence that had been present since they left the dorm. Immediately, the cowboy turned his head to him and smiled in response ready to her question. "How do you feel when you're with me?"

By this point they had reached the elevator and it was humming soundly as it sped upward to the third floor. Irvine continued to smile but he felt uncomfortable about Selphie's question oddly enough. "That's a funny question," He blurted, "why ya asking?"

Selphie shrugged as she leaned her back against the wall of the elevator, "Just wondering." Using her foot, she kicked herself away from the wall and stared upwards to her tall friend, "I like being around you, do you like being around me?"

Irvine's faced transformed into slightly confused, Selphie's statement sounded somewhat like what a girl he just slept with would say if he wasn't clever enough to wake up before her and get out. _Of course I like being with you too… _"Of course Sefie, actually I love being around ya!"

Selphie's eyes beamed with joy. She leapt up and threw her arms around Irvine, who still was carrying all of her items. The books crashed on the ground loudly, although neither of the two of them paid much attention. Irvine happily returned Selphie's embrace. He held her closely lifting her up slightly, his head rested against hers letting his cheek gently relax on Selphie's soft hair. She dug her face into Irvine's chest and squeezed her thin little arms around him as tightly as possible.

The elevator came to its stop with a conventional lurch and beep as the door slid open.

"Hey Sefie, I have an idea, let's go out and do something later today. You know, after your class, just the two of us?"

Selphie raised her head up and smiled brightly, "Can we go practice fighting today? I haven't gone in a while."

Irvine chuckled, "Yeah Sefie, if that's what you want to do."

Content, Selphie finally released her grip on Irvine, and as did he returning the petite brunette back on the floor. She knelt to the ground and collected her books and papers. Once complete, she stood straight, grinned at Irvine, and went on her way.

Irvine continued on his way to class with a goody smile on his face. Selphie's embrace reran itself in his memory. Perhaps the reason he found Selphie's question so discomforting was because he actually wanted to answer honestly, but he never had to say those words to any woman. Women asked it of him numerously, but he always managed to sneak an answer that sounded nice but wasn't actually.

"There's nothing I would've rather done last night."  
"I really **did** enjoy being with you."

Irvine's concentration broke as he made it to his own hallway. Zell, fully equipped with a bandage wrapped around his head, rushed up to him. "Hey Kinneas, when did Rinoa and Squall become peanut butter and jelly?"

Rubbing his neck, Irvine watched as down the hall Rinoa stood before Squall laughing as though they were intently having a conversation. As if Rinoa's bombing of her relationship with Seifer was the ripest grape on the grapevine all weekend, walking arm and arm with Squall didn't make her life any less juicy.

"Eh, who cares?" Irvine said with a smile.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

By the time, Seifer arrived to class, somewhat tardy, the crowd keenly observing Squall and Rinoa passed over, as the two of them had separated and went to their own class. The gossiping students now looked to Seifer with high expectations to expand their entertainment and conversations for the day. Unfortunately, for them, Seifer had no idea what occurred between Rinoa and Squall and therefore had no reason to riot against them.

Instead, Seifer sat back relaxed at his study panel causing no trouble at all. Although he sat quietly, he seemed to be hardly paying any attention to Instructor Trepe's lesson at all. His eyes glossed over dreamily with a smile on his face, clearly telling the populace of the rumor spreaders that he either didn't know of Rinoa's new situation or simply didn't care.

Rinoa hadn't crossed his mind of course since the other day when he realized just how wrong he was. There wasn't a doubt in his mind that he needed to give Rinoa a heartfelt apology, but at the moment they're many other thoughts occupying the spaces of his mind. His eyes were glued to his instructor, but he didn't hear what she said. His keen memory reenacted the night before in his head continuously.

He could feel Quistis' satin like gold hair between his fingers. He could imagine her slender bodice in his arms. He could remember her soft voice calling his name.

A small beep broke his train of thought. Seifer looked up at his study panel as a new window from Garden BBS opened itself claiming there was a new message. Seifer irritably clicked it open to read:

**Trepe Groupie #3 :**

**You really should pay attention to Instructor Trepe's lesson, it's rude of you to mentally check out when she tries so hard to teach you, and after all you wouldn't be a SeeD if it weren't for her!**

Seifer squinted his eyes irritably as he stretched his neck over his panel to see Narissa a row or two down scanning the room for other absent-minded students. He returned his view to his study panel and began typing away a reply.

**Seifer A. :**

**I wouldn't be so cocky if I were you, if you want to lecture someone wake up your lazy leader Baku. If you ever feel the need to give me authoritative advice again, I'll get my Disciplinary Committee on your skinny little ass! We clear?**

Seifer snickered as he watched Narissa, who seemed somewhat panicked after reading his message. She removed her hands from the keyboard and sat back listening to Quistis' lecture for the rest of the class.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Selphie paid more attention to Headmistress Edea than she ever had. She looked more enthused and her face more lively. Although Edea appreciated her happiness, she did feel a bit curious to the source.

Of course, Selphie herself didn't realize she was so happy. After finally having her fear of Irvine resolved she was content, not to mention there was Irvine's random acts of kindness that always put a small skip in her step. She watched Edea carefully as she explained arithmetic.

Whenever Edea offered a small break, Selphie simply remained seated and doodled on the side of her notebook. Her hand wrote out an extravagant "I".

"Why Selphie!" Matron cried out excitedly sneaking a glance at Selphie's doodles, "You're handwriting has gotten quite exquisite!" She patted Selphie's head while she smiled cutely happy for the compliment.

A knock at the door sounded, and the two of them turned to see Headmaster Cid enter. He bowed his head politely to Selphie and gently led Edea to a corner of the office to speak to her in hushed voices.

Curious Selphie leaned an ear out and tried to capture some of the conversation.

"… day it is?" Cid uttered.  
"I didn't even think ab…"  
"I should… see, do you think?"  
"Yes, I think so… not to go."

With that, Headmaster Cid respectfully let himself out and Edea returned to her desk ready to relay whatever they had discussed to her. "Selphie," She started as the tiny green eyed brunette stuck her head up, attentive.

"I'm dreadfully sorry, since you've been doing fabulously in class today but I don't think it'd be right for me to send you to Instructor Trepe today. For that matter, perhaps not for the week. I hope you're not too upset."

Selphie well recalled finding Instructor Trepe crying in the courtyard the day before, she wondered if something bad had happened to her. Regardless of how disappointed she felt postponing her fighting classes, she nodded complaisantly.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Instructor Trepe felt good being behind her desk again. The one-day break seemed awkward but returning felt wonderful. As her class ended, she called out for all her students to bring their report and recorded fight to her desk.

Her students turned in their work one by one until a student passed by without approaching her desk at all. "Viola," She commanded. The female student returned bashfully. "Where is your work?"

"I'm sorry Instructor; I just got so overwhelmed yesterday! I don't have it." She responded miserably.

"I won't accept your work any later than today, do I make myself clear?" Instructor Trepe replied sternly.

"But Instructor! I have so much work already; I have to get tomorrow's assignments done too!"

"That is not my concern Viola, you should have thought of that before skipping yesterday's work."

As this conversation ended, Seifer passed her desk nonchalantly. "Seifer," She called causing him to rear back to her desk. "Where are your assignments?"

Seifer turned his head away unsure of exactly how to answer. He smirked and replied, "I was busy Instructor, and so I don't have my work today."

They met eyes for one uncomfortable moment before Quistis broke the staring contest. She looked away and replied gently, "Please have it here by tomorrow then."

"But Instructor!" Viola shouted in contempt.

Quistis darted her eyes back to her and snapped, "Do you have a problem Viola? I don't think you realize that Seifer was in the infirmary yesterday. So therefore, I don't even need him to turn in a reported fight because Dr. Kadowaki so kindly supplied that for me. Now if you have any other issues I will be happy to help you after you turn in your work."

Seifer's smirk only grew as he exited the class.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine truly did love spending time with Selphie. She felt overexcited from the smallest things. The warm sun and complimenting refreshing breeze made her dance along the green fields of Balamb. She swung her arms out with her Flail merrily skipping down the road.

Watching her, Irvine could only find himself smiling. He watched the area carefully observing Selphie dance, and using his peripheral vision for oncoming monsters too strong for Selphie to handle. Suddenly Selphie stopped dancing and stood still waiting for Irvine to arrive to her point. "Something wrong?" He asked, approaching her.

She smiled and shook her head, "I was just wondering, what's it like over there?" Her arm stretched out as she pointed towards the coast.

"You mean the beach?" Irvine replied flatly.

"A beach!" Selphie cried out happily, "I've never been to a beach! I've only heard of them, what's it like!" She grasped Irvine's shoulders and hopped joyfully up to Irvine's eye level and back to the ground again.

Irvine halted Selphie's bouncing with easy hold on her shoulder, "What's say I take ya there myself?"

"Now?" Selphie replied gasping with her eyes wide with wonder.

"Course', if that's what ya want."

Selphie nodded vigorously as she leapt from Irvine's hold and skipped away, she turned around and yelled out excitedly, "I'll race you!"

_I'm always up for a chase_, Irvine thought sneakily as he attached his gun to a holster. He rushed after the bouncing brunette as she ran into the sun. Irvine watched as her little legs ran ahead of herself occasionally slipping. She leapt like a bunny, dashing to her destination.

As soon as Selphie felt the uneasy ground of sand beneath her shoes, she stopped sharply. Irvine however, didn't. Trying to hard to stop his speed, he tumbled into Selphie who had just turned around to see the oncoming collateral about to happen. The two of them crashed onto the dusty beach ground.

Facedown in the sand, Irvine plucked his head up and spun his head about. Selphie landed on her back, both of their legs tangled up forming a misshapen V or X. She clutched her stomach as she laughed jovially. "Irvy! You look so funny!" She giggled.

Irvine brushed his face off as best he could as he rolled over closer to Selphie. Legs still entangled, the cowboy lay right beside Selphie gazing into her brilliantly green eyes. He stroked her hair brushing specks of sand out. Irvine smiled gently noticing Selphie seemed somewhat nervous looking.

"Irvy," She said quietly.

"Yeah?" He replied smoothly moving his face closer to hers.

"You're kinda hurting my leg."

A flush of red came to Irvine's face as he quickly unraveled his long legs away from hers. He sat up and turned away embarrassed. A moment later, Selphie sat up straight as well and rested her head on his shoulder. "Is your leg alright?" He asked hesitantly.

"It's fine. Tee-hee." Selphie replied cutely. She snuggled closer to him and sighed relaxed. Irvine's stomach lurched. He loved being this close to Selphie, but it made him wonder if it felt as special to her. After all, at the night of the ball he caught Nida and her kissing, something they had never done.

Irvine hesitantly wrapped an arm around Selphie closing in whatever distance that was between them. He leaned his head against hers as the two watched the bright sun glowing in the distance. "Selphie?" He asked abruptly.

"Hmm?" She responded.

"How do you feel when you're around me?"

Selphie slid out of Irvine's arm and stood up. She brushed the sand caking on her legs and hair. Still without a response, she walked slightly closer to the water, her back to Irvine. She gazed longingly at the sun eventually closing her eyes to its brightness. The cool breeze ran through her hair. She smiled and said, "I feel happy, and excited." She turned her head around and concluded saying, "And I feel really, really safe."

Irvine came to his feet and walked over to Selphie. She looked at him widening her eyes with question. Gently he took her into his arms and hugged her.

While the two stood in their embrace, a grumble sounded beneath them. The ground shook somewhat a thin fin emerged. Selphie screamed in fright running behind Irvine to shield her. He in response held out his arms to enable his guarding as best he could.

Another fin emerged, and then another. Four fins finally gathered circling the two of them. Irvine didn't feel particularly threatened, but he did feel a great deal of concern for Selphie. He could feel Selphie's thin fingers digging deeply into his sleeves, her hand trembling in fear.

"Selphie," He said quietly. She nodded, too frightened to speak. "Can you run to the road?" Before answering, Selphie turned behind her to see how far the road was from their current position. It would be a bit of a sprint, but Selphie could see the road clearly. She finally nodded again. "Okay then, on the count of the three, you run as fast as you can to the road. Don't look back; these guys can really hurt you. Just run okay?" Selphie nodded again, her hands trembling even more. "1—2—3!"

Irvine brought out his rifle as Selphie blazed passed the circling fins. As she passed them the fins emerged even more revealing themselves as gargantuan fish. Selphie screamed as she leapt over them. In her leap, she dropped her Flail as it clanged loudly on the floor. She turned back stopping for a moment to see her weapon lying helplessly a few feet away from the monsters.

A Fastitocalon reared its large and ugly head towards Selphie as he ruffled its fins prepared to send a Sandstorm her way.

"SELPHIE GO!" Irvine shouted. Nodding again, Selphie forced her spindly little legs to run as fast they could manage until they reached the hard asphalt ground. She panted and grabbed her knees leaning over them to catch her breath. Finally content with her fast breathing, she turned around to watch a blurry picture of Irvine against the large monstrous fish.

Selphie could see the number of monsters had reduced to only three, still outnumbering Irvine. Tears filled her eyes as she watched in horror waiting for Irvine to run away as she did. She fell to the ground, her legs spread out as she covered her face.

Ten minutes later, she heard something stepping through the grass. "Irvy?" She cried out excitedly. Her head shot up to see an enormous fat Caterchipillar sluggishly moving her way. She screamed as hard as her lungs could provide. The Caterchipillar burst into flames followed by a series of loud gunshots causing it to shake and pulsate. Finally, it laid back in defeat, dead.

Several yards away, Irvine stood with his gun still aimed. He put his gun away, shifted his hat comfortably and advanced over to the road. Selphie watched in amazement as he came closer to her and offered a hand to help her to her feet.

Selphie's eyes brimmed with tears as she grabbed his hand, pulled herself up and jumped onto Irvine. "Irvy I was so scared!" She cried wrapping her arms around his neck. Irvine's arm flinched slightly as Selphie pressed herself against him. She let go and noticed Irvine's arm quivering a bit. "Irvy, you're hurt!"

Irvine smiled, "That's nothing a potion can't fix in a minute. I just didn't bring none. Are you alright?"

Selphie nodded with a smile, "I sure am, thanks to you!"

Pleased that he was able to get Selphie out of the situation, Irvine grinned proudly. "I almost forgot something." His long arm pulled into his trench coat and revealed Selphie's dropped Flail.

"Irvy! You brought it back!" She grasped the wooden poles joyfully letting her hands relish the feeling of glossed wood.

"It was nothin'." Irvine replied with a nonchalant shrug. "Now listen Selphie, if ya ever get scared like that, all you got to do is run back to the road. Monsters are scared of the road and they may get close but they'll never attack you so long as you stay on it. Okay?"

Selphie shook her head as Irvine wrapped his uninjured arm around her leading her up the road back to Garden. Selphie never felt safer than that moment under Irvine's arm.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

After class for the few next days, Instructor Trepe decided to catch up on all the work needing to be graded. There was Squall's and Seifer's speech, plus all the work she asked of her students from she was absent.

Headmaster Cid sent a notice to her telling her that they were giving her a week off from coaching Selphie, although the week was already almost over. With both Selphie and Seifer no longer seeing her after class, she found herself with a remarkable amount of free time. Although, her sessions with Seifer weren't a complete waste as she'd spend much of it talking to him while doing her work anyways.

Seifer had come to visit her again her last night, but she declined his visit saying she had too much work. He didn't seem happy of course, but he didn't cause trouble during class. There was a chance if he showed up tonight, he wouldn't take no for an answer.

While she looked over the long droning papers of Esther's security, she couldn't get her mind to focus on the paper's issue. The words sat there plain and bored while her mind drifted back to Seifer. Her heart sped up as the visions from the other night swirled in her memory.

She lost her breath as recalled Seifer's strong arms pinning her against her bed. Blood pounded in her head as she relived the sensation of Seifer's lips against her neck. She finally closed her eyes and tried with her best to block out the memories, intriguing and exciting as they were. Although she met with failure as the moment, her eyes closed the whole night played from start to finish.

Before the entire scene played out of course, Headmaster Cid walked through the door breaking Quistis from her theatre of ecstasy.

"Instructor Trepe, I hope I'm not disturbing you." He said politely as he walked to the front of her desk.

Quistis shot her head up and grinned respectfully, her face slightly red. "Why of course not Headmaster. What can I do for you?"

"I simply wanted to see how you were doing, as it is—" Cid's voice lowered, "that time of year again." He rearranged his spectacles waiting for Quistis to reply.

"You'd be surprised," She said as formally as she could manage, "I found a way to better occupy myself this year." Another flash of Seifer went through her mind causing a hue of red to return to her cheeks.

"I'm so very glad. Edea and I were worried about you; Dr. Kadowaki came up to my office and asked if we'd heard from you. I told Edea she should give you a break from your extra duties for the week."

"I'm very grateful, sir." Quistis relaxed as she pushed a lock hair behind her ear, "Although, I do feel much better this year. I finally feel things are going to be better for me."

Headmaster Cid smiled kindly as he bowed his head, "You've no idea how happy I am to hear that. I suppose I'll leave you to your work then." He began to walk toward the door until he made a sudden stop, "I apologize, but I did have one thing more to talk to you about. I don't usually bother myself in such trivial matters, but since it's not the first time it's come my way I suppose I should at least mention it to you."

Quistis glared questionably at Headmaster Cid waiting for him to continue. "Is there a problem, sir?"

"I'm sure it's just a misunderstanding, I've been hearing complaints about you showing favoritism towards some of your students."

"Favoritism?" Quistis repeated her, heart rate increasing. _I swear Viola… _

"Yes, the complaint used to be about Squall Loire, but I heard a new one this time, Seifer Almasy."

Quistis felt like someone had punched her in the stomach as fear crept through her lungs, "S-Seifer you say?" _Viola…! _

"I only assumed it's because of all your extra time you had to spend with him. I don't blame you taking a liking to your students Quistis, I just want you to be careful. Rumors get started quite easily in this school. I don't want your reputation being sullied so soon in your career."

"I understand, sir." Quistis replied quietly her eyes averting.

Headmaster Cid began to walk away again, a roll of thunder following. "Sounds like we're in for a storm today," He chuckled.

"Indeed we are." Instructor Trepe agreed under her breath.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

After a short lunch break after class, Irvine could think of no better way to spend his time than to visit Selphie, who according to yesterday was released from classes early this week. He whistled a merry tune as made his way down the familiar route to Rinoa and Selphie's dorm. He knocked as formality, since he didn't wait for an answer before letting himself in.

Inside Rinoa sat at the table in the common room with a book open as she wrote notes in her journal. She looked up to see Irvine enter. "Hey there Irvine, what're you doing here?"

Irvine pulled out a chair for himself and slid into it as he propped his legs onto the table, crossing them. He leaned his chair onto its back two legs while he rested his arms behind his head. "I'm surprised to see ya here, heh. Where's Squall?" He winked, "In your room?"

Rinoa blushed as she turned back to her work, "No, I haven't seen him since class." She smiled brightly as her fingers curled around her pen, "I haven't been this excited about anything in awhile." Her eyes met Irvine's, "Irvine, I'm just so happy."

Gently, Irvine returned his chair back to its four legs and reached an arm out to Rinoa. He patted her hand and comfortably returned her gaze, "I'm real happy for ya then."

"Good, you should know then we're going out this weekend." Rinoa added in a somewhat high pitched voice.

The cowboy laughed as he returned to his former station of leaning the chair back. He looked around the room searching for Selphie. The only signs of movement passed him and Rinoa was Angelo walking in and out of the rooms. "Say, where's Selphie?" He asked finally.

Rinoa thumbed through her book nonchalantly. "Um, I think she said she was going to practice fighting or something." Her eyes scanned her book deeply followed by her turning back to her journal to scribble something down.

A roll of thunder sounded as Angelo barked angrily back at it.

Irvine leaned back even further until he could see out of Selphie's window through her open room door. The clouds outside possessed a dull gray foreboding an upcoming storm. Irvine clicked his tongue irritably. "She went out there?"

Rinoa, still not removing her eyes from her work, replied quietly, "Yeah, she said she knew some roadside trick. Anyways if it really does rain I'm sure she'll come back."

"Yeah I hope so." Irvine said quietly.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''

After a few hours of pondering behind paperwork, Instructor Trepe walked tiredly back to her dorm, Headmaster Cid's speech in her mind.

_"I just want you to be careful. Rumors get started quite easily in this school. I don't want your reputation being sullied so soon in your career." _

Should she speak to Seifer about it? What would he even say? Instructor Trepe massaged her temples hoping Seifer ended up being too busy to show up to her dorm. Instead, of course, as fate would have it, the arrogant blonde stood against her dorm, waiting for her arrival.

"It's good to see you, Instructor." He said calmly while winking playfully. "I thought I'd ask you a question about the SeeD ranking exams." He swooped in closer and whispered, "How'd you like that excuse?"

Instructor Trepe force a smile as she opened her dorm, "Why don't you come inside, we actually have something important to discuss."

Whatever she meant by that sentiment, Seifer seemed pleased as he followed Quistis into her room. He sat himself immediately on her bed slyly smiling her way. "What did you need to discuss Instructor? The color of your panties?"

Quistis blushed and turned away from Seifer. "Actually, Headmaster Cid came to me today."

"Are you sending me to the Headmaster's Office, Instructor?" Seifer remained in his sly manner, although he didn't quite understand the innuendo in his statement.

"If only I should be so lucky." Quistis replied under her breath. She took in a deep breath and took a seat beside Seifer. Exhaling loudly, she took his hand into her own feminine fingers intertwining between. She looked into his eyes, hers trembling and somber.

"I have a feeling I'm not going to like what you have to say." Seifer said quietly averting his eyes.

"I'm afraid not." Quistis replied as she rested a hand on his cheek. She turned his head back to face her, "I'm sorry Seifer, I'm sorry I let my better self control slip in a moment of weakness."

"Moment of weakness? That's all the other night was to you?"

"Please Seifer, just listen to me." Quistis' hand remained on Seifer's cheek. "I'm your instructor; surely you realize why this would be difficult, no?"

Seifer jerked his head away and used his own hands to grasp Quistis tightly. He yanked her chin and pressed his face to hers to force a kiss. Instructor Trepe squealed as she pulled away. "Quistis!" He snapped, as she broke free of his grasp. She rushed to her window breathing heavily, her back to Seifer. "Quistis, tell me you don't feel chemistry between us, tell me you don't enjoy my company, tell me that the other night when I was with you it meant nothing Quistis!"

By the time Seifer had finished his rant, he was yelling. He too breathed in heavily as silence fell between them. They stood quietly awaiting the next word to be uttered.

"Instructor Trepe." She said finally.

"What?" Seifer retorted.

"Instructor Trepe, Seifer. I am your Instructor, as so you must call me Instructor Trepe." She turned around her face hard and stern. "Now if you'd be so kind, please leave my dorm, unless you have something you needed to discuss."

Seifer stared into her cold eyes and returned her gaze with a gawk so frightening arctic, it could freeze over fire. He bowed his head, "Whatever you say, Instructor." He turned sharply on his heels and exited the dorm.

Quistis grasped the wall behind her as she slid down. Her face fell as tears spilled from her eyes, the sound of her weeping hidden behind the crashing of raindrops against her window.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine pressed his forehead to Selphie's window; the cold from the glass chilled his face. "Where is she?" He mumbled to himself as his hand tapped the windowsill loudly.

"She's probably not out there Irvine; I mean why would she be? It's raining cats and dogs out there!" Rinoa blurted. Angelo snorted at her remark, to which she said, "It's just a phrase boy, nothing personal.

Irvine tore himself from the scene outside and took a seat beside Rinoa again, "I dunno, where else would she be?" He rapped his fingers against the table, "What if she's hurt, or lost or—"

"Is that the only thing you ever think is possible when Selphie goes out for a few hours?"

"Rin, she's little! She's tiny, fragile an—"

Rinoa held a finger to Irvine's lips as she stared deep into his eyes. "Irvine, I understand. Even if she wasn't little or weak, you'd be worried, because you care about her." She removed her finger and sat back down on her chair, "So do yourself a favor and go find her, because if anything does happen to her, you're just going to blame yourself."

Irvine stayed silent for a few moments, had he really become so insane over a girl? His heart felt twisted and pained just thinking of Selphie in a bad situation, truly the metamorphosis had completed. Irvine was in love. He finally smiled and nodded to his friend. "You're right! Don't wait up for me, eh?" He tipped his hat and left the dorm.

Before he could rush off to get Selphie, he ran back to his dorm and stuffed his pockets with as many potions as he could fit. After his coat bulged with magics and assorted items, he made way for the entrance of the Garden.

"Hey kid!" The old gatekeeper called as Irvine came hurdling towards him. "It's raining badly out there, you shouldn't be goin'!"

Irvine tipped his hat, "I'm afraid I have to sir!" Without another word, he rushed passed the entrance through the puddle-saturated courtyard and out of the Balamb Garden grounds.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Selphie sat miserably in the middle of the ground. She hung her head mournfully over her knees as she gripped her Flail in both her hands. Her entire body felt numb from the showering rain that pelted hard against her. She lost count of how many hours passed since she came out here to attempt fighting on her own. After a few narrow escapes with Bite Bugs, her courage failed and she retreated to the road for the remainder of the trip. After walking so long she lost track of exactly where she was. Lost, alone, frightened, and cold she sat on the ground praying for the daylight to return and show how to get back to Garden.

The wind howled rustling trees from nearby forests. The wind also disturbed the monsters that growled angrily in the distance. Selphie's heart leapt in terror as she came to her feet. Her boots sloshed loudly and uncomfortably with every step. She spun her head right to left trying to see if anything was near her. The darkness of the rainy night hid any possibility of her seeing anything. Tears filled her eyes and she randomly began running down the road.

She didn't know if the direction she ran towards would bring her closer or further to Garden, but in such anxiety she no longer cared. The raindrops felt like sharp ice shards but she'd long forgotten what warmth felt like.

Her foot stepped into a deep puddle throwing off her balance and causing her to topple over her legs. She splashed loudly and painfully on the ground with water splattering everywhere, not that she felt she could be any more soaked. Her leg burned in pain as she could see it now bled from scraping the pavement so hard.

Wiping her face uselessly with her wet sleeve over her face, Selphie sniffed loudly as she came to her feet weakly. Her feet ached from the uncomfortable friction from the excess water collecting in her boots. She continued to run.

"Selphie!"

Selphie halted in place and looked around through the darkness.

"SELPHIE!"

The voice sounded vaguely like Irvine. Was she imagining things? She spun around wildly looking madly for the source of the voice. Was Irvine truly around her? Afraid to make a move in either direction of the road in paranoia the voice would stop sounding; Selphie cupped her frozen fingers around her lips and screamed, "IRVY!" Her fingers burned from the cold, they shook frantically as she closed her eyes and screamed again, "IRVY!"

"SELPHIE!"

Selphie could hear stomping, someone coming closer. Irvine was here? He was really here? She opened her eyes to see Irvine rushing down the road towards her. Her heart skipped a beat, as he became clearer and clearer in her eyes. "Ir—vy…" She whispered.

Irvine finally reached her frozen little body and wrapped his soaked arms around her. He held her tightly raising her clean off the ground. Selphie returned his embrace and held herself as high and tightly in Irvine's grasp as she could.

"Irvy, y-you're here." Selphie said, too weak to show any energy. Irvine had lifted her until she could feel the warmth of his breath on the side of her face. Warmth… how warm Irvine felt. She turned his head relishing the warmth on the front of her face, her nose, her chin, and her lips.

Irvine stroked Selphie's wet hair, so soaked it actually fell straight over her head and ears. He moved a sodden lock to reveal the side of her face. "Are you alright?" He said, the heat from his breath sending relaxing vibes through Selphie's numb body.

She brought her face closer to Irvine's until the unfeeling tip of her nose met with his. A drunken smile touched her lips as she nodded to answer Irvine's question. Irvine's breath on her lips magnetically drew hers closer to his.

Irvine took in a deep breath realizing this was the closest he'd ever been to Selphie. Every moment similar to this, Selphie had turned away or someone walked in disturbing the moment and yet, here they were alone and closer than ever before. Irvine let his lips gently touch Selphie's, and much to his surprise, instead of pulling away she came closer sealing their first kiss.

_The secret of happiness is to make others believe they are the cause of it._

–_Al Batt_


	36. Chapter 35

"_Kimi no soba de nemurasete, donna basho demo kekkou."  
("Please let me sleep next to you, any place will do.")  
_

_Beautiful World  
__Chapter Thirty-Five_

Irvine didn't know how to react.

Selphie's small arms held tightly around his neck pulling her as close as possible. Her small body against his felt amazing sending excitement to his every end. Irvine's arms wrapped around her back sneaking his fingers into her wet hair. Finally, after a few moments of intimacy Selphie slid away making contact with the floor again. She gazed upward dreamily to Irvine, whose hand was still in Selphie's soggy hair.

After returning to his senses, Irvine noticed just how cold Selphie was. Although she smiled cutely to him, Irvine couldn't shake the frozen feeling slowly taking away the heat in his hands due to Selphie's wet locks. Her lower jaw shuddered slightly as she continued to grin. "Selphie," He said softly, "You're freezing."

Selphie blinked a few times before stepping away, she looked down at her soaked uniform clinging to her wet body. "Oh— yeah," She returned her gaze to Irvine. "I'm kind of cold Irvy."

Irvine observed Selphie a bit longer seeing a dark red mess on her calf. "Selphie, you're bleeding!"

She blinked again as she placed a hand against the injury she received after falling in the puddle earlier. A stain of blood remained on her hand as she lifted it up. It didn't stay long as the rain washed it away. "Irvy, I'm bleeding." She said softly.

Somewhat frightened by Selphie's calm appearance, Irvine blinked madly at the scene. The more she looked up into his eyes the more dizzy she seemed. Before she completely collapsed, Irvine swiftly reached under her legs and lifted her into his arms. She rested her head against Irvine's chest relaxed and comfortable.

Even if Selphie only lingered on the edge on consciousness, Irvine never felt more elated. He kissed Selphie Tilmitt; it only took a handful of months, several attempts, and countless hours of company. He nestled his head against hers as she laughed in reply.

As he walked through the pouring rain, Irvine realized the town was closer than the Garden was. It surprised him just how far Selphie had traveled on her own. Of course, she wouldn't have been alone had Irvine not taught her that the road was safe. Too happy to feel guilty, Irvine tightened his grip around Selphie and spun.

Selphie laughed as she spread her arms out. Her melodic laugh echoed in Irvine's ears… her sweet, beautiful laugh.

Irvine felt lost in the moment. Despite the freezing rain and abysmal darkness, he couldn't wipe the smile plastered across his face. Selphie too wore an expression of unbridled joy.

In the distance, the shine of the nightlife of Balamb glowed. Balamb stores closed particularly early, and the nightlife was rather nonexistent, so other than the streetlights very little lit up the rain filled streets.

The tallest building in town was surprisingly the only one still blazing through the storm, the Lovely Balamb Hotel. The cerulean building glowed like a beacon to where Irvine needed to be. With Selphie frighteningly cold, Irvine didn't want to try taking her to return her to Garden.

Before they entered the shining blue building, Irvine returned Selphie to her feet. Desiring to take in more of the moment, he spun her around one last time ending with a kiss on her lips.

When Irvine pulled away, he was met with Selphie's cheerful grin. As he began to walk into the hotel, Selphie latched onto him grabbing his hand as he entered.

"Welcome to the Lovely Balamb Hotel," The receptionist said immediately as the doors swung open. She laid eyes on the soaked couple and hollered, "Oh my! You poor dears! You're both dripping wet! Oh let me get you a towel," She signaled to another worker who quickly fetched them each a towel.

Irvine rubbed his head of long hair as he noticed Selphie who walked over to a mirror hanging on the wall. While she patted herself as dry as she could manage with one towel, Irvine stepped up the receptionist.

"Thank you for the towel miss," He tipped his wet hat to her, "could we bother you for a room as well?"

The receptionist smiled at him, "Of course it's 100 gil for the night, now would you like a room with two beds or one?"

Irvine blinked actually unsure of how to answer. He turned to Selphie, whose towel laid on her on her shoulders gazed deeply into the reflection in the mirror. He smiled at the cute little figure marveling at herself. With a small chuckle, he turned back to the receptionist.

"Two beds or one sir?"

Selphie watched as her flat heavy hair began to retrieve its buoyancy. She looked long and hard at the reflection facing her. She recalled the last time she came to this place, how different she looked. Her face slightly skinnier, paler, and much more frightened. Although, she was much dryer last time.

The image she imagined appeared in the mirror. Selphie blinked in shock as the reflection spoke. "You're prettier now." It said. Rubbing her eyes, Selphie pressed her hand to her chest as to assure the reflection was speaking to her. "Yeah, you're really pretty now! Much better than last time."

"As pretty as the ladies at the fountain?" Selphie asked quietly trying to avoid letting Irvine and the workers catch her talking to the mirror.

"Definitely prettier than them! You know what I think?" Selphie leaned in awaiting the mirror to continue. "I think it's because you're happier." The reflection dissolved as Selphie saw Irvine appear behind her. She turned around and was met with his tender embrace.

"Come on sweet stuff, let's go rest up eh?"

They linked hands again and traveled down the hall. Selphie recollected how she felt the last time she walked down here. Her heart thumped so loudly she could hear it in her ears, unlike the time before, it came from sheer excitement.

Contrary to Devin's command to go to the room, walking side by side hand in hand with Irvine felt like paradise. Everything felt opposite with this time. The opposites continued after Irvine opened the door to their room revealing the much smaller room than Devin's and contained two beds.

Irvine kissed Selphie's hand before letting it go. "Why don't you relax?"

_"Why don't you go inside Selphie?"_

_Jumpily, Selphie turned to see Mr. Devin coming towards her. As he approached the door, he grasped the card from her hand and opened the door. While it stood wide open, Devin waited patiently for Selphie to go inside. She remained, with her feet planted outside._

_"I said, why don't you inside Selphie?" Devin urged the kindness slowly droning out of his voice. Selphie felt his hand on her back slyly pushing her in. She resisted and looked at Devin with a desperate face and tears welling up. She shook her head in persistence. Finally, Devin used his normal strength and shoved Selphie passed the doorway. Selphie's small body toppled over itself and fell flatly a few feet inside. Mr. Devin closed the door behind him and started pacing the room._

"Irvy," She said finally, "Why'd you bring me here?"

Irvine looked to her almost ready to laugh, "Sefie, you're freezing! You need to get warm. If I took you all the way back to Garden, you'd be frozen to death." He chuckled as he walked into the room's bathroom. He exited holding two fluffy white bathrobes. "Come on, change out of those clothes before you get sick."

Selphie hesitantly took the robe from Irvine and stared at it. Her fingers slowly went to the collar of her uniform as she sat frozen almost ready for Irvine to knock her unconscious or pin her to the ground.

"Relax Sefie, I'm not looking." Irvine chuckled with a wink. He tossed off his coat which landed loudly on the floor with a big squash. Selphie looked up at him as he slipped off his shirt also letting it land loudly on top of his coat. His strong muscular back flexed as he reached for his bathrobe and threw it one on arm at a time.

After he slipped off his shoes, socks and pants, he wrapped the bathrobe closed and looked to Selphie who still hadn't moved. Instead, she looked at him and sneezed. "Sefie, why don't you go wash up in the bathroom? You look really uncomfortable… Oh right! Your leg!" Irvine rushed over and swept Selphie off her feet before she even uttered a word. He rested her on a bed and pulled her leg out to see her injury. He scurried off to the bathroom, grabbed a small towel, and shuffled through his wet coat pockets until he pulled out a few blue glowing bottles.

After collecting his items, Irvine returned to Selphie's side and gently elevated her injured leg. He opened one of the glowing blue bottles with his teeth and poured the contents on her wound. The area glowed for a moment and faded into her skin relieving the pain with it. Afterwards, Irvine patted her leg dry with a towel trying to remove the caked on blood. He looked into Selphie's eyes and smiled, "Feel better?"

She nodded her head as she came to her feet, "I really do." Planting a small kiss on Irvine's forehead she trotted merrily to the bathroom.

As she didn't open the lights of the bathroom, or close the door, Irvine couldn't resist the urge to sneak a peek at Selphie's faint silhouette of her small bodice removing her wet articles of clothing. She disappeared in to the dark bathroom while Irvine heard the sound of running water. A few moments later Selphie came out wrapped in the fluffy white robe.

Irvine grinned as he gestured with his head to the second bed in the room. "Let's get's some rest and warm up? If I'm cold I know you got to be double. We should probably take you to Dr. Kadowaki's tomorrow."

Selphie slipped under the covers and lay on her side facing the cowboy on the other bed. They met each other's gaze and longingly looked in each other's eyes. "Irvy?" Selphie said breaking the silence. He perked up his head in response. "I'm still so cold."

Although Irvine got two beds to be polite to Selphie and not appear headstrong and lust blinded, he'd be lying if he said he didn't want Selphie to say something like that. He slipped out of his bed and joined Selphie in hers. He wrapped his arms around her and held her close, resting his head against hers.

He wanted her to call him close, but he decided to be a gentleman still and just spend the night like this, Selphie in his arms, warm, safe, and relaxed. He kissed her on the forehead and whispered, "Goodnight Selphie." She didn't reply, but Irvine realized it was due to her sleeping against him.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

_ "Whatever you say, Instructor." Seifer said snidely, he turned around sharply ready to exit. As he reached his door, he turned back to Instructor Trepe, whose eyes were filled with tears. "Instructor you want to be called, Instructor you will be called."_

_ He grabbed Quistis' arm and yanked her to her feet. Before she had a minute to say anything and rebuttal, Seifer kissed her hard. He strung his hands through her hair, and although Quistis knew in her mind she wanted to push away, she couldn't fight him. She weakly let her arms fall to her side as Seifer led her to her bed._

Quistis gasped as her eyes shot open. Her heart pounded, to sooth its incessant rapid beating, she rested her hand on her chest. She looked side to side on her bed assuring it was empty. Her fingers curled around the edges of her sheet as she hesitantly lifted it over her head. Clothes on, no obnoxious blonde knight to be found.

_It was a dream Quistis, relax._ She exhaled loudly trying to remain calm. The night passed and Seifer was now furious with her. It wasn't a good situation, but nonetheless it was hers. Quistis glanced to the side to see her clock ticking away showing the time. She sat up and pressed a hand to her head. It'd be a long day but she'd survive, hopefully.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Selphie slowly opened her heavy eyelids to the bright light of morning pouring through the numerous windows of the hotel room. Her vision blurred, she could barely make out someone standing across the room wearing a towel around his waist. She blinked several times focusing her view with each blink. "Ir—vine?" She said finally making out the long muscular torso with the familiar face.

Irvine swung a towel over his head and rubbed his long hair. "Morning Sleepin' Beauty." He walked over to her bed and ruffled her hair. "Man, your hair is funny lookin'." He chuckled.

Selphie sat up and looked around the room. Her clothes along with Irvine's were neatly laid out on the unused bed beside her dried and ironed ready for use. The room was comfortably warm due to the moisture slipping out of the bathroom. Irvine sat himself down beside Selphie and snuck a kiss to her cheek.

"Did ya sleep well?" He asked as he tussled her hair again.  
Selphie nodded, "What time is it Irvy?"

The cowboy returned to his feet and stretched his long arms out as he scanned the room for a clock. He yawned loudly at stopped as he noticed an ornate mermaid holding a clam shaped clock. "Well, let's put it this way. If we were still at Garden, we'd both be in class for about an hour."

Selphie jumped out of bed, "Oh no! Matron!" She quickly grabbed the dry clothes on the bed and scurried towards the bathroom as Irvine easily held her back with one hand.

"Relax Sefie," He laughed. "I always skip class, Rinoa takes care of that for me and this morning I called her and told her to swing by Matron's office and tell her you're sick." He removed his hand from her shoulder, "But you can still go change if ya want. Check your hair out." Irvine walked away returning to the tedious task of drying his own long hair.

Selphie watched Irvine in slow motion. She looked back to her clothes and listlessly walked towards the bathroom. With Irvine, she saw so many parallels between him and Mr. Devin. They were both so keen to take care of her— was she so helpless that she always sent out a signal that she needed care and help?

So many people helped her in her life, but did she always need it? Would she have survived without it? Why did they help her, what did they expect she could give them in return? Selphie stopped thinking at that moment, instead she looked at the frilly mess on the top of her head. Her hair not only stuck out sideways, but it represented as a mangled mess everywhere. A smile touched her lips as she laughed at her reflection.

"Saw your hair huh?" Irvine called.

Selphie quickly changed into her clothes and washed up. She ran water through her hair trying diligently to tame it in some fashion. After several attempts, it remained curly and unruly. She surrendered and came back into the room to find Irvine fully dressed and placing his signature cowboy hat on his head. He turned to Selphie as she entered the room.

"Nice and warm huh? Hotel courtesy of drying our clothes for us. Anyways, you hungry? Let's go grab something to eat before we go back to Garden."

Instead of replying to Irvine's question, she walked up to him and stared into his eyes deeply. "Irvy?" She said finally. He nodded confused but alert. "Why do you always take care of me? Is it because you feel sorry for me?"

Irvine's eyes widened. Lately Selphie had been asking the most peculiar questions; questions that Irvine always knew the answer to but felt hesitant to actually vocalize it. This time, he felt confident. He took Selphie's tiny hands and curled his long fingers between hers. He brought her small fist to his lips and kissed them softly.

"You know Sefie, I've spent my whole life just taking care of myself. Heck, I had help with that too, with Rinoa taking care of me since I was kid." Irvine returned Selphie paranoid glance with softened eyes, "I guess the thing about taking care of someone is that you enjoy doing it, just to see that other person smile." A sincere grin touched his lips, "Who knows, maybe one day you'll be taking care of me."

Selphie nodded as threw herself into Irvine's arms hugging him tightly. "Mr. Devin was like that too." She said muffled into his shoulder. "He always took good care of me. One day though… I made him mad. I don't really know what I did, but I got so scared that I ran away with you. I'm still so scared of him, and I get so worried thinking if I make you mad, you'll treat me the same way."

Irvine thought back to the wretched night that he found Selphie lying miserably on the cold floor of her shack home. The night changed his life forever. Her entire body bloomed red fresh a severe beating. Was that all the doing of the infamous Mr. Devin Selphie spoke so highly of?

"Sefie," He said quietly patting her head, "I never want to do anything to hurt you, and I'm going to do my best to make sure you never get hurt again."

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Quistis rubbed her temples feeling glad the class had ended. Her students assembled their items and headed out at varying paces. Without much voluntary control, Quistis let her eyes peer over towards the back row where Seifer sat at one end, and Squall on the other.

Seifer sat rather stubbornly without appearing to have the intention of moving. Squall on the other hand packed his items contently as he looked towards the doorway with a look of pleasure in his eyes. Confused, Quistis turned to the entrance of her classroom to see Rinoa entering cheerfully.

It took amazing self-control to keep her jaw from completely dropping and hitting her desk with a loud clamor. Rinoa walked to Squall and linked her arm with his casually and comfortably. Unsure of just when exactly it happened, Quistis realized if she still did pursue Squall her chances were shot now.

Before she pondered too long, Quistis shot a quick glance to Seifer to see how he was taking the shocking event happening five yards away from him. To her surprise, Seifer didn't pay the slightest attention to Squall, but instead his eyes stared coldly on her. She blushed and turned back to her face back to the surface of her desk.

She closed her eyes waiting for Seifer to pass over her, leave class, and possibly throw his frustration on Squall or some other pathetic kids who crosses his path. As she waited, a paper slid across her desk stopping right in front of her downcast head. She read the name at the corner said 'Seifer Almasy.'

"My report, Instructor." Seifer's voice callously echoed in her ears.

"Thank you Seifer." She uttered quietly. The electronic humming of the doors sounded signaling Seifer's leave. After a few minutes, the familiar sound of the Trepies gathering around her desk finally forced Instructor Trepe to look up.

"Can you believe Rinoa? She moved on fast!" Baku shouted.  
"You know, even though she came to the ball with Seifer, she was seen dancing with Squall." Narissa expanded.  
"Maybe they were both having an affair and Seifer was the first to get caught." Lena concluded.

Instructor Trepe gazed irritably at the three of them. "If you three have nothing better to do than waste my time with idle chatter and gossip then please leave now!"

Narissa cupped her hands over her mouth, "Oh Instructor! You sound so upset. Is there something wrong? Anything we can do for you?" Lena grasped her friend's shoulder and beamed her watering eyes at her icon. "Oh please tell us Instructor, we're here to help!"

Baku grabbed both girls from their collars and began yanking them away from Quistis' desk. "Leave dear Instructor alone! Come on gang!"

"You know what I heard just after I left class?" Lena chirped recovering from Instructor Trepe's dismissal. "I heard Irvine Kinneas walked into Garden holding hands with some girl. He even kissed her in front of everyone!"

"Is it Scarlet? They were together at the ball." Baku asked genuinely curious.

"Nope, some new girl from Galbadia or maybe Trabia I think. I don't know her name, but from what I heard they're together a lot. Do you think it's serious? How weird would that be?" Lena continued.

"Poor thing, she has no idea that crazed cowboy is going to break her heart!" Narissa cried out dramatically.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Selphie and Irvine confronted the entrance of Balamb Garden, hand in hand. Before stepping inside, Irvine stopped them and pulled Selphie over to a bench to sit down. Looking concerned, Selphie faced her cowboy with confusion as if to say 'what's wrong'.

"Before we go in there, I just wanted to ask you—Selphie, do you want to be my girlfiend?" Irvine immediately felt like an idiot as the words slid passed his lips. He felt like a ridiculously pathetic nerd trying to ask a girl out as teenager for the first time.

Meanwhile Selphie thought deeply about the question Irvine just asked. While he sat fuming in his own humiliation, she recollected the only times she'd encountered the world 'girlfriend'.

There of course was Rinoa who had her boyfriend, Seifer. When Selphie first came to Garden, they seemed happy enough with each other. As time went by, she saw and heard less and less of him. Then there were random women at the fountain who would abruptly have short relationships calling them their boyfriend. Jaxon Ogleworthy wouldn't have any of that and immediately terminated any relationship he had wind of between any of the ladies of his fountain.

Although there was no good example of boyfriend and girlfriend relationships that Selphie could think of, but still there was something glamorous about the word. Not giving the idea much more thought, her mouth opened and the word yes came out.

Irvine blinked; surprised his measly attempt and frank wording actually got him the answer he wanted. He gave no retort fearing it would change her mind; instead, he gripped his hand around Selphie's and led through the entrance of the Garden.

A part Irvine knew the reaction students would give him as he so blatantly showed off his new girl. He only hoped of course, that Selphie didn't notice it. Unfortunately, for him, Selphie did spot the odd stares and whispers following her. Watching the judgmental people around him, Irvine felt agitated and angry. He wanted to defy and tick them off.

He pulled Selphie close to him, catching her off guard, and in front of the entire Garden, he kissed his new girlfriend. Selphie blushed as Irvine pulled away, he whispered softly in her ear, knowing the image it gave to the gossipers around him. "Hey I'm going to go catch up with Rinoa. I'll meet you later."

Selphie felt a little light headed, but happy. Irvine disappeared behind the bend of the hall. Time went by and for a while, she lingered around the halls wandering about bored. Free for the day, Selphie finally decided to head to the library. As she made her way towards the blue hall, she noticed several students also rushing their way there. Selphie hadn't reached the library before Rinoa's familiar face appeared exiting.

"Selphie!" She called cheerfully. "You're back." In a friendly manner, Rinoa hugged her friend and began walking with her opposite of the library. "You don't want to go in there, it's really loud. Some hot new gossip has them all chirping."

"I wonder what." Selphie said reluctantly following Rinoa away from the crowding hall.

"It's all about you, didn't you know?"

Rinoa and Selphie turned around to face a girl they both vaguely knew, but neither liked very much. Scarlet, with her vivacious curls and tight clothing stood a few feet away from them. A sly smile touched her plump lips. She walked towards them slowly, habitually prepared for a man's gaze to linger on her at any moment. "Your entrance with Kinneas caused quite a stir toothpick." She stopped inches to Selphie's side, "I wouldn't worry of course. He'll be bored with you soon enough."

"No one likes a sore loser Scarlet." Rinoa snapped feeling belligerent towards seductive brunette.

Scarlet ignored Selphie for a moment and turned to Rinoa with a cunning smile. "Why, look who it is! Rinoa, I haven't seen you since I was—what was it," Scarlet feigned thought and snapped her slender fingers as if she'd discovered something, "That's right, when I was sleeping with your boyfriend, Seifer right?"

Rinoa put her hands on her hips and shook her head, "No hard feelings Scarlet, you just helped me push aside some dead weight I called my relationship. I'm over it." She winked. Although Rinoa knew she was lying straight through her teeth, she refused to let Scarlet know just how much it bothered her she was with Seifer.

Scarlet raised an eyebrow and returned her attention to Rinoa's quiet companion, Selphie. "You know tiny, the rumors will never stop, but the relationship— will. Enjoy your time with your precious Kinneas now because as much as you like to think your some kind of exception, he'll toss you out like an old shirt too." She turned sharply and walked away leaving Selphie with a face of distraught.

Rinoa shook Selphie's shoulder madly, "Don't listen to that harlot! She just likes causing trouble. That evil siren!" Rinoa stared darkly at the vixen strutting back towards the library. Her eyes welled with tear of pure hatred and anger.

"Rinoa, are you alright?" Selphie asked meekly.

"Just don't listen to her okay?" Rinoa snapped. She grabbed Selphie's arm and pulled her down the hall to an empty corner to a bench. Once they sat down alone from the massing crowds Rinoa released Selphie's arm and took in a deep breath. "Selphie, I've been pretending like it hasn't really bothered me but it's killing me okay? Scarlet is the reason I broke up with Seifer— I mean sure I know we weren't going to last much longer anyways." She stopped and wiped her eyes as preemptive attempt to prevent crying. "It doesn't matter, okay… just don't listen to that jerk! She's pure evil. I'm going to go." Rinoa stamped to her feet and rushed away.

Selphie didn't have much time alone to ponder about Scarlet and Rinoa's words before another familiar face and interrupted her.

"Selphie, how good to see you." Greeted Nida.

Unfortunately for Selphie, she hadn't seen or spoken to Nida since the night of the ball almost a week ago. Anytime Nida crossed her mind, little as it was, it only brought distaste and discomfort. She never decided what she'd tell Nida when they finally came face to face, even when she scouted him the other day. Selphie simply predicted she'd improvise or let Nida do most the talking, as he seemed to be very good at doing.

"Hi Nida." She said finally.  
"I haven't spoken to you since the ball, is everything alright?" He continued politely.  
"Course'!" Selphie replied happily, and honestly.

Nida looked around, after deciding Selphie was obviously alone he turned to her and said, "Would you mind if we went a talked for a bit? Alone if you don't mind."

With a small shrug, Selphie came to her feet and followed Nida down the hall.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Rinoa stormed loudly into her dorm, not at all phased by Irvine who already made himself comfortable. He watched with a raised eyebrow as Rinoa furiously thrashed about the room.

"You okay?" Irvine asked hesitantly.  
"What the hell is Scarlet's problem? Are you her property or something?" Rinoa snapped.

Irvine held up his hands defensively. "Whoa calm down there now little chicabo, what's bothering you?"

Huffing loudly, Rinoa threw herself into a chair. Her force swung the chair to lean until it collided with the chair Irvine sat on. Rinoa's head landed on Irvine's lap as she sighed as she tried to relax. "I've just been ignoring this issue… Irvine why do you think Seifer was with Scarlet the night of the ball?"

Irvine thought of several possible ways of answering Rinoa's questions, most of them jokes and mean puns against Seifer though. He looked down at Rinoa's sprawled hair over his lap and sighed. "Rin, I can't answer that for you, you know that. I know you guys broke up but if you don't talk to Seifer about it you're gonna think the worse of it."

Rinoa shot her head up, "The worse of it? What do you think that is Irvine? That I **pushed **him to Scarlet? That I'm the reason things got so awfully boring between us? That maybe if I had spent just a little more attention to my actual boyfriend I might still be happy with him?"

Hesitant to answer, Irvine looked away and thought again before answering. He didn't like being in his head so much, especially during conversation. It reminded him too much of Squall. "Rin, I know it was probably nothing personal. I mean it could've been any girl."

"That makes me feel so much better Irvine!" Rinoa screamed as she leapt to her feet.

"I didn't mean it like that—" The cowboy protested nervously, "I mean like, maybe he wasn't thinking at all. You guys weren't together that night, he probably had too much to drink or something like that." Irvine halted his rambling and rested a hand on Rinoa's shoulder forcing her to look deeply in his eyes. "You owe to yourself to talk this out with Seifer, and not beat yourself up about it until then."

Rinoa's eyes trembled as she weakly responded, "What if he says exactly what I'm afraid of? What if I'm doomed to ruin my relationship with Squall too? Let's face it, I haven't been making the best decisions lately…"

"You learn from your mistakes Rin, even if Seifer says something you don't want to hear, you're not going to repeat them with Squall."

"How can you be so sure?" Rinoa shouted shrilly.  
"Because, in just a few days you're happier with Squall than I've ever seen you with Seifer. Squall's not Seifer Rinoa, and your relationship isn't going to be the same." Irvine rested his other hand on Rinoa's shoulder as well and smiled. "Talk to Seifer, learn the truth, but then don't worry about it anymore."

Rinoa finally grinned back and hugged Irvine gently. "You know Irvine, I believe you. You know why? Because I already see proof, you with someone who makes you happy, is already turning you into a better person. Ever since Selphie's been here, you're actually becoming a model citizen." She pulled away, "I'm happy for you, and I'm sorry I ever discouraged you."

She began to walk towards the exit to her dorm.

"Say Rinoa, have you seen Selphie?" He asked.  
"Yeah, I think I saw her talking to Nida last. He'll probably know where she is." With that, Rinoa left in a much cheerier mood.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Nida closed his room door after him and Selphie entered. The small brunette looked around the room intrigued with the neat display of his items. The Garden Faculty always did a fantastic job of giving SeeDs wonderful rooms to start out with; the upkeep was in their hands, however.

After looking about, Selphie took a seat and looked towards Nida waiting to hear what he had to say. The two of them had been rather quiet the entire way here, although it didn't bother Selphie, who spent the entire time thinking about Irvine.

Nida breathed in deeply as he gazed nervously towards Selphie, "I suppose you're wondering why I brought you all the way here to talk…" He chuckled hesitantly.

Selphie didn't look concerned but she did appear confused and somewhat bored. She tilted her head and replied, "Um sorta. Is something wrong? I know we haven't talked since the ball."

"Yes the ball!" Nida responded, gracious to have some help into his conversation. "I wanted to ask if you had enjoyed your night at the ball," He added quietly under his breath, "with me."

Lighting up like a star, Selphie nodded like a bobble head. "I did! It was great, I wish there were more balls like that. Is the committee going to have more parties like that?"

Nida pulled at his collar as he took a seat, "Before we discuss that, could I ask why you left in such a hurry?"

Selphie pouted and looked at the floor guiltily. She never did come up with an answer to this, even to herself. Sighing softly, she forced a grin towards Nida. "I'm sorry Nida, I guess I just got nervous because Irvy showed up."

"But you were my date!" Nida protested somewhat like a child.

To this, Selphie just stared blankly unsure of how to reply.

Exhaling loudly, Nida look away bashfully, "I suppose then, there's no way you'd consider going out with me again." He inhaled deeply and met eyes with Selphie again, "Is there?"

"Well sure!" Selphie said, much to Nida's surprise.

"Really?" He nearly gagged.

"Yeah! I mean I really like the Student Festival Committee. I totally want to stay in there, so we'll hang out a lot during meetings. Plus I'm sure I'll want to go to every party the committee has!"

Nida blinked realizing Selphie was not referring to exclusively dating him. He choked a groan in his throat and forced a smile, "Yes, of course. We will still see plenty more of each other then."

Selphie came to her feet, "So is that all you wanted to talk about?"

"Actually," Nida looked up hopefully, desperate. "Since we were interrupted that night at the ball, do you think…" He gulped as he stood up, "Perhaps we could share one more kiss?"

"Um…okay." Selphie said rather hesitantly.

Nida beamed as he gently put an arm around the petite girl. He closed his eyes and leaned in gingerly placing his lips against hers. Selphie stood still and uncomfortably. She felt tense and uneasy; it was nothing like kissing Irvine.

With Irvine, everything flowed smoothly. She felt content and happy to be in his embrace, to be so close to him. Irvine caressed her so strongly, she felt safe. Nida on the other hand felt didn't seem to have a great handle on it.

Nida's door burst open and Irvine allowed himself in, "Hey Ni—" He stopped in place, his face frozen to the words he meant to say before laying eyes on Nida kissing his incredibly new girlfriend. Of course not just any girlfriend, the girl he'd been falling head over heels for over the passed half year.

Immediately subsequent to Irvine's entrance, Nida and Selphie broke away. Selphie turned a blooming red as she observed Irvine's shocked appearance.

Nida massaged his temples and groaned, "Of course Kinneas, who else but you would show up at this very moment? Ever heard of knocking?" He squinted his eyes irritably not sure on why Irvine looked so surprised.

"What the hell is going on here?" Irvine said finally.

"As I said to you last time Irvine, why is this any of your business?" Nida sounded as though he was growling.

"I'll be happy to show you Donner!" Irvine hissed. He reared his arm back and socked Nida in the middle with all his might. Completely taken off guard, Nida fell to Irvine's blow and landed flatly on his back. "STAY THE HELL AWAY FROM MY GIRLFRIEND!"

Irvine grabbed Selphie's arm roughly and dragged her out of the room leaving Nida completely stunned.

Selphie watched Irvine nervously as her heart raced. Now she'd done it, she'd finally ticked him off. After punching Nida, she knew she was next to face Irvine's wrath. Irvine however power walked with Selphie's arm tight in his grasp for a while until he found himself in an empty corridor. He released Selphie and paced frustrated.

"Wha—what the hell was he doing?" He sputtered. He kept his volume low but couldn't fight his confusion. "Did he hurt you?" Irvine looked desperately at Selphie who looked terribly frightened. "What did he do? Why were you in there with him?"

Selphie's eyes welled, "I'm sorry Irvy… he asked for a kiss a-and said because we were interrupted—"

"You kissed **him**?" Irvine disrupted, his voice hitting an octave he didn't know he could make. "Why?"

Selphie stayed silent truly confused and unsure to respond. After staring at her new furious boyfriend in stillness for a few moments, she finally meekly uttered, "Did I do something wrong?"

Irvine blinked, several times. Did Selphie actually not realize what she'd done? _Remember where she came from… _Irvine eyed her carefully observing her fear and forming tears. He didn't mean to completely attack her like this, although he didn't particularly mind punching Nida. Trying to make sense of the situation, Irvine breathed in deeply and exhaled loudly.

"Selphie… I'm your boyfriend." He said quietly. "Right?"  
"C-course' Irvy, we said so this morning." Selphie replied in the same meek voice.  
"Then why were you kissing Nida?"  
"He asked me to."

Although Irvine was still mildly angry at the situation and could easily take Nida to a duel and destroy him to no end of joy, a smile cracked on his face and he broke into laughter. Selphie, of course, still madly confused looked at him as though he'd lost his mind.

Irvine gently grasped Selphie's shoulders. "Selphie, don't you know what it means to have a boyfriend?" To this, his small little companion shook her head. He leaned his head until his forehead leaned against hers. "It means that, I'm the only guy who gets to kiss you." He puckered his lips letting them just barely brush Selphie's nose. "And you, my little lady are the only girl who gets to kiss me."

Easily, Irvine swept Selphie into his arms, carrying her bridal style. "Do you get it now?"

Hesitantly nodding Selphie replied, "I'm sorry Irvy."

Irvine pecked his girlfriend's cheek, "Don't worry about it none." _But Nida should… _"Now that it's all straightened out, where to?"

"Can we go to Instructor Trepe's classroom? I want to see if I can still make a class with her."

"To Instructor Trepe's class!"

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Instructor Trepe gripped her red pen tightly as she irritably scanned over Seifer's report. The entire paper leaked of innuendos directed towards her. Some subtle, however most of the comments would let even the daftest person figure out the situation.

_Esther's security, what to say about it? It's perfect, no countries armies have been able to break into it… unlike me who broke right into someone's the other night. Marvelous, and quite a sight, oh and Esther is pretty impressive too. Some securities hold up well, but what can I say? I know how to bring them down._

After a few paragraphs of Seifer's inaccurate writing of Esther, he finally broke off tangent and ignored the subject completely.

_I can't believe you're making me write this, I fully believe I deserve extra credit. How many students do you have made you cry out like you did with me? Who cares about this report, fail me go ahead… I think I'll try remaking it up later. _

Quistis crumbled the report and squeezed the ball of paper in her clasped hands as tightly as she could. She breathed in soundly trying her best to remain calm. She remained, her eyes closed, keeping her composure. Seifer could not keep acting like this.

Whether or not Instructor Trepe felt ready to see anyone, her classroom doors slid open and in came Selphie along with the infamous Irvine Kinneas. "Hi Instructor!" Selphie greeted cheerfully, her mood elevated drastically since her talk in the hallway with Irvine.

"S-Selphie," Quistis responded flustered, "What're you doing in here?"

"Class?" She replied questionably.

"Oh, right." With a small forced laughed Quistis pushed a lock of hair behind her ear. "You still have this week off, it's the last day but enjoy it."

Selphie exchanged glances with Irvine behind her. She shrugged and turned back to Instructor Trepe, "Tee-hee, great. See you next week Instructor!" She waved happily and made way to the door.

"Hey instructor," Irvine said before exiting.

Quistis looked up to him. She'd spent very little of her time ever conversing with Irvine, but thanks to her Trepies she'd heard enough of him. "Yes?"

"There's someone waiting outside your class for ya, should I tell them to buzz off? Ya seem kinda busy."

"N-no that's fine, actually tell them to come in."

Irvine nodded and let himself out. Shortly after he'd disappeared, Seifer appeared through the door. "That's right come in." He said with a snicker.

Instructor Trepe darted her eyes towards the obnoxious blonde pace the space between her desk and the rows of study panels. He smiled slyly her way as he smoothly landed in a chair in front of her desk.

"Ah Seifer, I'm glad you came." She a slight tone of aggression growing in her voice.

"I'm sure you are." Seifer purred as he gazed at her, his eyes thin.

Crossly, Quistis tossed the wad of paper she'd held at Seifer's forehead. She smirked and crossed her slender arms, "I'm sorry to say you failed your assignment."

Seifer watched as the paper that had just hit him bounced onto the floor. He chuckled and turned back to the clever lady sitting elegantly before him. "Grading me so harshly, Instructor? It seems hardly fair."

"That's all I needed to say to you. Now if you please, take that filth away with you as you leave." She turned away sharply and occupied herself with another report.

"Why Instructor, is that any way to refer to the work of one of your beloved students, and I thought you'd appreciate my," He paused waiting for Quistis to finally meet eyes with him again, "unique perspective."

With a small huff, Quistis stacked her papers and clipped them together. She tucked them under her arm and came to her feet. "Enough of your nonsense Seifer. Please leave."

Seifer swiftly came to his feet and before Quistis. "Not before I get a chance to have a remake. I believe I mentioned that in my paper."

"Seifer," Quistis repeated her voice stern.

"Surely you don't actually think my work is filth, after all," He leaned his head to bring his lips to her ears, "It was all about you."

"I said leave." Instructor Trepe repeated firmly.

Seifer ran his hand from the back of Quistis' head, through her free golden locks, across her smooth cheek to her chin. "I don't think you really want me to." He said in the same squalid undertone.

"I do." With that, Quistis sharply turned her head freeing it from Seifer's strokes.

Seifer clicked his tongue, "Then this might be unpleasant." Within a fraction of a moment, he grabbed Quistis and pressed his lips against hers. Quistis released a muffled squeal. In response, Seifer tightened his hold, positive she couldn't resist for long.

Quistis almost lost her train of thought in Seifer's tight hold. Her eyes shot open as she fisted her hands and beat against Seifer's shoulders trying to break free. Knowing she was on the verge of completely giving up, she finally raised her hand and slapped Seifer's cheek as hard as she could manage from her angle.

Seifer, forcefully torn away from the kiss, shot up and looked at Quistis, his face appalled. He observed Instructor Trepe who rubbed her lips against her arms feigning disgust. She looked at him darkly and shouted hoarsely,

"I SAID LEAVE!"

Seifer shook his head as he squinted his eyes. "You are such a hypocrite. I've seen you hitting on Squall, what would you have done if he kissed you? I can guarantee you Instructor it wouldn't have been as fantastic as it was with me." He grinned evilly, "You want to push me away?" He raised his arms in the air, "Push, but don't expect me to fight you forever, Instructor. I won't fight someone who knows what they want but purposely doesn't listen. It's a futile battle, even for a knight."

He turned towards the door. Just before he activated the automated doors, he stopped. Without facing Quistis he said, "Enjoy as you get to watch the blast from your past and the chance of your future move along without you. Choose your priorities wisely, Instructor."

_I'm sorry I've been out so long, but THIS STORY WILL BE FINISHED NO MATTER WHAT! Even if no one reviews or reads it ever again! ...NO WAIT I WAS KIDDING PLEASE READ AND REVIEW!_


	37. Chapter 36

"_Beautiful World!"_

_Beautiful World  
__Chapter Thirty-Six_

Few Saturday nights in Irvine's life went to playing children games, even as a child. Instead, he spent time with the various passions in his life, gunmanship, and later on, women. Occasionally he'd spend a weekend or two devoted strictly to Rinoa or school, but it truly had been a long time since Irvine played Cheeky Chirpy Chocobos.

Despite its difficult to say alliterated name, Cheeky Chirpy Chocobos was about taking control of a plastic chocobo head, whose beak would open at the command of the only button on the board, and then trying to eat as many gyshal greens. The player with the most in their chocobo's mouths by time's end, won.

Irvine madly pressed his buttons watching the shiny plastic beak open widely and gobble the greens, which were just small balls painted to have gyshal greens on it.

"Tiiiime's up!" Selphie called cheerfully releasing control of her chocobo. "Count them up!" She released the contents of her end of the board and excitedly counted each colored sphere totaling her score. "Alright Irvy… I think this is the score to beat, 15!"

"I was close you know." Irvine scoffed stubbornly, unfamiliar with good sportsmanship. He flicked his collection of 13 greens aside.

Rinoa had gone off on her date with Squall, leaving Selphie to have the dorm to herself, and Irvine of course. While Irvine knew and thought of several ways to take advantage the night, Selphie arrived the day before thrilled and excited to show him a game that Matron found in the storage room.

As the General's daughter's best friend, there was no toy Irvine hadn't received the pleasure of playing with, but after seeing Selphie's enthusiasm to play it, he couldn't resist.

"Alright you win again, can we do something else now?" Irvine asked, partially because the game was dull, and partially because he kept losing.

Selphie sighed as she scooped the game and all its pieces back into its rightful box. "So what should we do now?" After securing the cover over the top of the box, Selphie took a seat next to Irvine. She tilted her head cutely looked into Irvine's eyes.

"How about a movie? I'm pretty sure Zell has a TV we could probably borrow. Apparently we're like best buds now." He chuckled.

Selphie's eyes lit up, "A movie?" She repeated in wonder.

"Yeah, you got any preferences? We could call a cab and rent one from town."

Selphie leapt to her feet and danced tip-toe to tip-toe. "Oh I've only watched one movie." She a brought a hand to her flaring her fingers dramatically. "It was really good."

"You've only watched one movie… in your whole life?" Irvine asked raising an eyebrow.

"Yep!" Selphie nodded ecstatically. "It was the only one I found find at Mr. Devin's house. Whenever I went over there and was bored, I'd watch it!"

_More Mr. Devin eh? _The more anecdotes Irvine heard of the infamous Mr. Devin, the most confused he got. From the sounds of it, he was a relative who looked after her on some note, but if that were the case why was she a prostitute who lived in a shack? Also, what did Selphie do to make him so angry at her that it strikes fear in her heart just thinking about it? _Probably not a relative then… maybe someone she just met and helped her out some? Maybe she owes him money or something… _

Irvine blinked realizing he'd been silent for a long while, he rubbed the back of his neck nervously and began talking hoping Selphie didn't notice. "So what's the name of the movie?"

"The Dragon Knight! It's about a Sorceress—"

_Oooof course it is, why wouldn't it be? Not that I really expect Selphie to be into cowboy movies or anything, _Irvine thought to himself.

"who gets captured by this biiig red dragon. So her knight goes on this really hard journey to get her back. It's so sweet, and the knight is super cool!" Selphie smiled brightly, "Haven't you heard of it? Mr. Devin said it was really famous. The guy who played the knight is like a president or something."

Irvine thought hard over the collection of films he'd watched, he definitely heard of the Dragon Knight, a Galbadian film if he recalled. _"_The Dragon Knight," He repeated, as the knowledge returned to him, "isn't that like insanely old? Like older than you and me?"

Selphie shrugged, "I don't know, but I really liked it! Can we watch that?"

Irvine chuckled, "Well, since it's really old, it might be kinda hard to find. How about we do that another night, after I get a copy?"

Still smiling brightly, Selphie nodded. She looked around the dorm, silent for a few moments. Finally, she said, "So what are we going to do now then?"

A grin touched Irvine's lips as he came to his feet. He swept Selphie into his arms and gazed into her eyes deeply, "How about something fun and crazy?" He uttered smoothly.

"Like mess up the dorm and blame it on Angelo!" Selphie squeaked. She slipped out of Irvine's grip and began at her loony idea. Irvine turned around and watched as Selphie knocked down the chairs, gentle to not break anything. With a small shrug, Irvine joined in finding the sabotaging the dorm to be quite enjoyable.

After tearing the room apart, Irvine opened Rinoa's door revealing peaceful sleeping Angelo. He scattered a few books in her room and tore a few sheets of paper to finish it off. Satisfied that the evidence led to Angelo Irvine smiled and observed the handiwork with Selphie.

"That was fun!" She cheered.

"That was fun," Irvine agreed. He gently whisked Selphie by the shoulders and placed her back against the wall, "but when I said crazy and fun I had something more like this in mind." Slowly he moved his head to hers and grazed her lips with his. He felt her lips forming a smile before he engaged in locking his lips with hers.

A moment after Irvine comfortably placed his arms around his small girlfriend, and she around his neck, the door behind them opened revealing a nicely dressed Rinoa. Selphie and Irvine tore away and saw her enter the dorm hesitantly with Squall behind her.

Rinoa looked around the dorm, stunned. Finally, after making out the mess she looked to the pair across the room that looked rather flustered. "Wha—" She began.

"It was Angelo! It was like this when we got here!" Selphie squeaked as she leapt over the clutter, passed Squall, and down the hall.

"Yeah, you need to get that dog some new toys. He's totally restless." Irvine added hastily as he followed Selphie closely.

The two of them trotted down the hall, laughing victoriously at their prank. However, the possibility of Rinoa screaming down Irvine's deck did arise. Carelessly, the two of them walked towards the end of the long winding corridor to the single dormitories where SeeDs and instructors stayed.

"So what should we do, now that we're alone again?" Irvine purred wrapping his arms around Selphie, bringing her back into himself.

Selphie looked up at him innocently, "We wer—"

Before she could finish her sentence, a door close by opened and a very excited Zell emerged. "Hey guys!" He raised his massive hand in air and called to them loudly. "Great timing!"

"Is it?" Irvine moaned under his breath as Selphie slipped away curious to see the cause of Zell's added energy. Zell spoke rapidly his hands moving madly as he gestured. After he'd told Selphie he looked over her head to Irvine to ask if he was coming. Since Selphie was already following him, Irvine dragged his feet along.

"Irvy isn't that great? We were just talking about that!" Selphie squeaked happily.

Irvine paused trying to recollect what exactly they had just been talking about. Not wanting to sound like his conventional sniper slut self only concerned with his interrupted make out session, he opened his mouth only to look ever more confused.

"We're talking about my new TV Kinneas." Zell said happily. He gestured for them to come into his dorm, where Amy sat pointing to the new shiny television set. The screen had a flat surface, with a silver perimeter gleaming its small manufacture's logo on the bottom corner.

"Woods Inc…" Selphie read tracing her fingertips gingerly over the metallic tree icon. Somehow, that sounded familiar to her.

Zell chuckled, "54 inches of beauty!" He looked back at his friends with a wise smile, as if ready to explain something. "You guys know much about Wood's Industry? It's amazing, it started five generations ago as small merchants trade. It's grown to a huge company that's pretty much a conglomerate that has a hand in anything and everything."

"And it's owner is Vinzer Deling!" Selphie jumped up excited to contribute a piece of intelligent information to her much more educated peers. She finally recollected that she heard Wood's Incorporated from Matron's suitor's speech.

Amy, Zell, and Irvine exchanged awkward glances. They all wanted to explain to Selphie that she was dreadfully wrong, but her upbeat attitude would inevitably be crushed. Hesitantly, know-it-all Zell smiled and said, "Actually Vinzer Deling is the president of Galbadia, Wood's industries is stat—"

"Who cares! Let's watch something off of this thing!" Irvine interrupted finally admiring the television set. "What'd you do Zell, splurge your first paycheck on it?"

Zell squinted his eyes. "Tch as if. It's a gift from my Ma in Balamb. You know, the celebrate me becoming a SeeD. Come on everyone take a seat." Unfortunately, the single dormitories were not very big or able to contain much furniture, as so the three of them climbed onto Zell's bed. Selpie leaned against Irvine and Amy against the wall waiting for Zell so she could relax in the same position. "Okay, so let's watch Secretary!" He set the movie to play and jumped onto the bed beside Amy.

Irvine felt the need to protest, but Selphie's enthusiasm as the movie started halted him. The movie as he predicted wasn't his cup of tea. It was about a Chocobo ranch on the verge of closing down, until a miracle chicobo is born. In order to save the ranch, the chicobo, trained as a racer, must win three grand races, an impossible feat.

Shortly after the climax of the movie, Irvine heard a small sigh that came from Selphie. He turned to the side and saw her fast asleep against his shoulder. He chuckled and motioned to Zell. Amy and him smiled as they waved goodbye to Irvine who carried Selphie in his arms.

Although Irvine had no trouble of carrying Selphie all the way back to her dorm, he felt hesitant to face Rinoa if she still was awake. That aside, he wanted to remain with Selphie. More or less due to the second reason, he went along to his dorm, only a few more doors down. He rested Selphie gently on his bed and laid by her, comfortably falling into a restful sleep.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

The weekend passed by and nearly four days since any male interruption. Not as though to say she needed it, Quistis hadn't really found the men in her life that distracting. If anything, they always made her work harder.

Levi always inspired her to become the best SeeD. When he passed away his absence made her concentrate only harder on work, so as to keep her mind away from him. Squall intrigued her to be the best instructor in hopes that he'd give her the time of day. Seifer… well Seifer was a few hours with company. Other than that, he never really troubled her.

That is since things became dramatically more complicated between them.

Although she dismissed Seifer, blatantly telling him to leave her personal life, she found it surprising someone as stubborn as him had given up so quickly. It felt almost unsettling that he'd shown up to class perfectly on time, with his assignments always done and always greeted and wished goodbye to her in the most polite manner.

_Maybe he's trying to lull me into false security… _Quistis thought snidely. _It's only been two classes, I'm sure he'll pull something this week. _

Seifer walked into class, and with a neutral "Good morning," he rested his paper on her desk. Without another word, he smoothly went off to his study panel. She eyed carefully as he gazed about the classroom avoiding her eye contact.

Not trying to appear too obvious, she slid Seifer's paper off the stack and began reading. Although it wasn't perfection for the assignment, it contained no vulgarity or innuendo of any kind. Baku's overly poetic papers had more flirtatiousness to it.

She knew she ought to be pleased, but a part of her felt defeated that Seifer had already ceased fighting. It felt as though the rumors of Seifer cheating on Rinoa affected her relationship with him too. Did he truly not care anymore? Did he ever?

"_Choose your priorities wisely, Instructor._"Seifer's last words echoed in her mind clearing up her confusion. Although Seifer's feelings didn't feel certain in her heart, she realized Seifer was waiting for her to make a move. _I'm his Instructor, there's no moves to be made! _She inhaled deeply realizing the end had arrived, she and Seifer had arrived at a standstill and neither would resume.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine walked into class in a chirper mood. Selphie awoke and left to her classes with Matron before he realized it, but no matter it didn't put a damper on his mood. Not only did he enjoy a fun night with Selphie, but also today marked the day he took his first SeeD Rank Examination. As he hadn't been on a mission, it simply showed his standing with other currently unoccupied SeeDs. Plus a bump in his next paycheck, whenever it may come.

He looked over to Rinoa who sat in her routine seat, beside his study panel. She leered at him darkly as if to say, 'I know what you did last night!' Hesitantly, with a nervous smile, Irvine stepped lightly and sat himself down. He tipped his black cowboy hat to her, a part of his outfit that always came along despite him wearing a school uniform, and beamed. "Rin, you look so—"

"Not in the mood Irvine. I spent all last night trying to figure out if it was Angelo who messed everything up." She snapped her head in his direction, "I realize it wasn't!"

"It was Selphie's idea!" Irvine pleaded defensively.  
"Oh wow Irvine, first my dog then your girlfriend? Have some pride and own up to your crimes." Rinoa scoffed returning to her study panel.

Although Irvine hadn't lied, causing trouble for Rinoa didn't sound like a pastime for Selphie. Without a doubt, it sounded more believable laying the blame on Irvine. He shrugged and leaned back in his seat waiting for Akii to enter class. He turned his attention back to Rinoa, who sat prepared for lecture to start.

"Sorry if we messed up your date though." He said quietly.

Without turning to him, and keeping her eyes on her study panel, she dazed off with a small smile. "It's okay, it was rather helpful. To be honest, I just feel nervous around Squall now. After things are finally working out it's hard to just relax around him. I haven't even kissed him."

"I thought—" Irvine started.

"**Since we started dating**!" Rinoa scolded. With Irvine hushed, she inhaled softly and sighed. "I just need something to break the ice again, but he's so quiet I can't expect him to do it."

"Too bad I'm not your date, you're always relaxed around me." The cowboy chuckled readjusting his hat.  
"Irvine! That's it! You're a genius!" Rinoa clasped her hands together happily.  
"I am? Well course' I am, but what'd I do?"  
"Let's have a double date, you and Selphie with Squall and I. It'll finally just get me to relax and be myself again. Come on, what do you say?"

Irvine rubbed the back his neck uncomfortably. In the past, he learned he wasn't terribly fond of double dates. "With Squall? He's such a stiff…" Although, he knew Selphie most likely would love the idea of going on a date. They hadn't since the night they met in Trabia. Perhaps this one would end better. He glanced over at Rinoa's pleading eyes, "Eh okay I guess."

"Oh thank you Irvine!" Rinoa squealed. She didn't have much of a chance to continue her words of gratitude since Instructor Akii walked in and called for everyone's silence. He issued Irvine his exam and proceeded to lecture the rest of the students.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Once class ended, the normal crowd of students eager to leave wasted not a minute to exit. The other lingering minority dawdled slowly following trickling the remaining few to the Trepe Groupies along with the two SeeD's in the class finishing their level exam.

With the SeeDs still working, the Trepies paid their respects and left Instructor Trepe alone with Squall and Seifer who finished their tests at the exact same time. They avoided even bumping shoulders with one another as they placed the sheeted exam on Quistis' desk.

As they both turned to leave, without control Quistis blurted, "Wait." The two stopped and gazed at their Instructor curiously, not attempting to be in such unison. Realizing both students were paying her attention, Instructor Trepe bashfully pushed a lock of hair behind her ear and cleared her throat. "If you two are interested, you may wait here and I'll grade these now."

Seifer glanced over at Squall who'd crossed his arms, turned away, and entered a moment of thought. Rolling his eyes and internally groaning, Seifer mentally cursed him. After pondering for a few quiet moments, Squall relaxed his arms and shook his head. "No thanks, not interested." He turned to the exit, "Take your time." He added as he left.

The doors hummed softly as they closed swiftly behind leaving Instructor Trepe alone with Seifer. So far, Seifer said nothing about wanting to hear his results; rather he'd spent the entire answering period fuming at Squall.

"Seifer?"

Blinking his emerald colored eyes in realization Squall left, and he alone remained with Quistis he turned around and smirked politely. "Yes Instructor, please do grade mine. And if Pretty Boy really has no desire to know his rank, I'd be happy to get rid of his results." Ending with a small chortle, Seifer leered at his lovely instructor watchfully.

"Very well, take a seat." Quistis replied calmly. She rested Seifer's exam before her and scanned over his answers. She listened intently as he stepped closer and took a seat. Not looking up to meet his gaze, Instructor Trepe failed to notice how close Seifer chose to sit by her. After scanning the first few questions, she raised her head shocked to find Seifer only a foot or so away, his head even closer. "S-Seifer," She sputtered.

"Well? How am I doing so far, **Instructor**?"

Quistis rested back in her chair as she inhaled deeply. She could see now the shallowness of Seifer's politeness. With every effort to address her, he wanted to strike her with her own words. "So far, so good." She finally responded with a wry smile.

She returned to the last question she read and began scanning the next series of answers. Seifer's attention and focus on her burned the top of her head. She drummed her fingers over the edges of the paper trying to return her own attention to the exam.

_Zombie is a status affliction cured by an Echo Sc— _Quistis' thought process found itself interrupted by Seifer resting his hand over hers. "What are you doing?" She said sharply.

"I've changed my mind, I don't need these answers right this moment. You can take your time with mine too." Seifer grinned slyly narrowing his eyes. He removed his hand from hers and came to his feet.

"Seifer—" Quistis began unsure of how her sentence would end.

Seifer kept walking until he reached the door; with a loud sigh, he turned back to her. "I didn't mean the exam, Instructor." He released a small chuckle and flicked a small wad of paper towards the desk. It landed silently on the tile floor and bounced once remaining a few feet from Quistis' chair.

"What is it?" She breathed, her eyes locked on the small amount of paper.

"A proposal, Instructor." Seifer replied in his conventional arrogant tone. "One that only you can determine the end to."

Raising her eyebrow sharply, Quistis shot her head back up to Seifer. "What in Hyne's name are you talking about? Stop playing games Seifer, this is unnecessary and not amusing. And here I was just beginning to accept your good behavior."

A moment of quiet passed before Seifer smiled widely and began laughing heartily with a sneaky undertone. "Oh Instructor," He managed to say between chuckles, "Where's the fun in good behavior?"

The classroom door droned as it opened revealing Selphie in the doorway. She looked blankly at Seifer, who still laughed, hard. She blinked and gazed into the class spotting Instructor Trepe. Opening her mouth to begin talking, Seifer yanked her shoulder and pulled her out.

"Seifer!" Quistis called after them.

Outside in the hall, Seifer ceased his chortles sharply and stared coldly into Selphie's eyes. "What do you want with Instructor Trepe?"

"I-I have class." Selphie replied hesitantly.  
"Not today you don't. Go away."  
"But—"  
"Have yourself a free day."  
"Shouldn't I—"

Seifer narrowed his eyes and stood up straight, towering the small brunette. "I'm going to make this easy for you to understand small fry, **go**… **away**." He pressed a single finger against Selphie's shoulder watching her flinch at his strength.

Selphie rubbed her shoulder looking fiercely back at Seifer, only a shred of fierceness of course as she was rather small in comparison to the stalwartly and tall Seifer. "You can't do that! You're not a teacher, Rinoa's Ex-Boyfriend!"

"Of course I'm not surprised you know that, but I'm not going to say it again Thumbelina." Seifer said obnoxiously.

"What's goin' on here?"

Seifer and Selphie turned around to see Irvine exiting a different classroom. He glanced at Selphie, then Seifer puzzled. "Selphie, you okay?" He turned to her, obviously more concerned about his small girlfriend versus the bullying ex-boyfriend of his best friend.

Selphie nodded with a smile, overjoyed to see him. She shifted her head towards Seifer and said, "He's not letting me see Instructor Trepe."

"Stay out of this Kinneas, don't you got a woman to shoot or a monster to bang?" Seifer snapped crudely stepping forward.

Irvine raised his hands up defensively, "First off, it's a monster to shoot or a woman to bang and secondly no! Why're you botherin' my girlfriend? Haven't you tortured enough of the women in my life?"

Seifer raised an eyebrow as if waiting for Irvine to explain.

"You broke Rinoa's heart, you slept with Scarlet who was my date for the ball, and now here you are botherin' Selphie!" Irvine shook his head, "Give it a rest man."

With a small evil laugh, Seifer casually patted Selphie's shoulder. "Careful Kinneas, I've been with two of the three you mentioned. Would hate to leave it unfinished." He passed the two of them briskly and continued laughing until he reached the end of the hall where he was met up by Fujin and Rajin. The trio turned a corner and disappeared.

"What the heck was that about?" Irvine asked his face twisted bizarrely.

Selphie shrugged, "I don't know. I just wanted to see Instructor Trepe for our class."

The doors to Instructor Trepe's classroom opened automatically as Quistis stepped out gracefully. She smiled bashfully at the couple, "I'm terribly sorry about that. Please come in, both of you."

Exchanging confused glances, Selphie and Irvine shrugged and followed Quistis into the classroom. She sat herself behind her desk and looked to them back and forth. "Has Seifer been acting up around school lately?"

Irvine thought for a moment, "I guess since the ball he's been a little rough around the edges, you know more than usual. I mean he beat Zell up for no reason, and I hear a lot of people complaining about the Disciplinary Committee being a whole lot tougher."

"I see, I was afraid of that." Quistis said softly. She turned her attention to Selphie. "I repeat I sincerely apologize for Seifer's rude behavior. If you would please keep that between us, I'd be very grateful."

"Oh sure! I mean I don't know who I'd tell anyways." Selphie said with a small giggle. She tilted her head cutely, "Is everything okay?"

"I just believe that I've been edging Seifer along lately. Instead of just fighting against Squall like normal, he seems to take it on just anyone. I've received complaints from Headmaster Cid, and I just hope no one else says anything to him."

"Are you going to be in trouble Instructor?" Selphie gasped.

Quistis smiled politely, "I certainly hope not, but—" she took a glance at a small piece of wrinkled paper in her hand, "I just don't know how to get Seifer under control."

"Hey no worries Instructor, heck Squall and him have been in the same room for a week and since Squall started dating Rinoa, Seifer hasn't killed him yet. You deserve an award or something for that!" Irvine said encouragingly.

"Squall and Rinoa, yes that is shocking isn't it. Tell me, has Seifer and Rinoa spoken since?" Quistis asked calmly.

Selphie and Irvine leaned against each other thinking. "Nope!" They answer in unison. Selphie continued afterward, "They broke up right after the ball." Irvine chirped in after her, "After their real sudden break up, Rinoa was a mess. She did get over it pretty quick, after all it seem like she had a big crush on Squall for awhile."

_I knew it!_ Quistis thought darkly. She sighed loudly thinking over, even if Rinoa began to have feelings for someone else, Seifer did the exact same crime. What appeared as a sudden break up to the rest of Garden, struck Quistis as inevitability. How long had it been since Seifer came to her with a problem relating to Rinoa. She should've seen that as a sign long ago.

"Say Instructor, why don't you take the day off from Selphie's classes and think about it?" Irvine said randomly.

Quistis looked blankly for a moment then slowly smiled, "Yes, I think I'll do just that." She gazed at the two standing against each other before her. _So this must be the rumor following Irvine, little Selphie here. _With a small kind chuckle Quistis continued, "You two enjoy yourselves then. I have a lot to think about."

''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine and Selphie returned to the dormitory hall in silence. While Selphie looked jovially about the sun streaming views of the outdoors, Irvine fumed mentally about Seifer's last comment. Surely, it held no real threat, but the mere idea sickened him.

After the greater majority of the walk passed by in quiet, Irvine remembered what he wanted to speak to Selphie about before. He turned to her and gently touched her shoulder pulling her out of her daydream " He Sefie, I had a question for ya."

"Sure Irvy, anything."

"Let's go on a date."

Selphie's eyes beamed widely as a smile grew on her face. She began jumping on the tips of her toes excitedly, "Oh Irvy really! Just the two of us?" All through her life she'd heard of people going on dates but seldom found herself on one, she didn't count her outings with Mr. Devin as dates for sure.

"Oh uh, actually it's a double date. You, me, Rin, and uh Squall." Irvine quickly added fearing the affect it'd have on Selphie's joyful attitude.

"Rinoa too? Oh that'd be so great! I can't wait!" Selphie leapt into her tall cowboy's arms and wrapped her thin little arms around his neck. She kissed him hard on the cheek and giggled, exploding with enthusiasm.

"VIOLATION."

Selphie broke her grasp on Irvine and slid to her feet as the two of the turned to the origin of the stern female voice they'd both heard. Coming towards them marched Fujin, Rajin, and their infamous leader, Seifer.

"Haven't we seen enough of you guys?" Irvine moaned recalling only fifteen minutes prior in front of Instructor Trepe's classroom.  
"You broke a rule of the Disciplinary Committee, ya know." Rajin boomed with his hands on his waist leaning forward.  
"What rule is that? Being so incredibly more good lookin' than you?" Irvine argued eying Rajin with a haughty laugh.

"PATHETIC" Fujin sighed turning away with disgust.

"Enough Kinneas, you violated the rule: No PDA in public areas of Garden. Now prepared to be disciplined by yours truly." Seifer snapped coldly.

"Be gentle fellas," Irvine continued to tease with a feigned looked of fright on his face. Selphie defensively stood before him throwing her thin arms out.

"Please don't, I kissed Irvy!"

Seifer eyed her questionably and then looked back to Irvine with a shocked look. "Seriously Kinneas? You're having **this **defend you?"

"You know Seifer, you shouldn't be so mean. You could get Instructor Trepe into a lot of trouble, and she really worries about you." Selphie pouted childishly and held up a finger in attempt to be authoritative, "She spends a lot of time on you and you could just worry about her a little and not get into so much trouble!"

Seifer blinked after Selphie's little rant. Behind him, Rajin nudged for to precede the disciplinary protocol, but Seifer seemed too stunned. "Let's go." He said after a few moments of silence. Fujin nodded and followed while Rajin sputtered a moment before doing the same.

As they watched them disappear down the hall, Irvine swept an arm around Selphie's shoulders, "Well aren't you just full of surprises? I ain't ever seen anyone make Seifer that speechless." Selphie gazed up and smiled in response as they made their way to her dorm.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Later that night while Rinoa and Selphie discussed excitedly about their weekend double date, Irvine boasted to Zell about finally having asked Selphie out, Squall remained to himself fighting in the Training Center, leaving Seifer alone to his thoughts in the quiet still halls.

Several ideas of what he should and could do came and went, but by the end of his walk, he ended alone before Instructor Trepe's door. The idea of coming this far entered his mind numerously, but the action to take afterwards hadn't crisped. He soundly knocked, waiting to see Instructor Trepe elegantly opening the door, her hair out, and her attire ready for bed.

"Seifer?" She asked quietly.

"I need to say something to you." He uttered so quietly Quistis barely managed to make it out. She let the door swing open a bit more, allowing Seifer to enter. After closing the door behind him, she turned with an unpleased face.

"Seifer, you shouldn't be here." She began to protest.

"I just needed to tell you—" He noticed the wad of paper he'd left in the classroom earlier now took residency on the night stand where Levi's picture once stood. Soundlessly, he buried the small paper in the grips of his hand and began to turn for the door. "I'm sorry, for a lot of things. Starting with this, I'll leave you alone." Seifer focused on the ground refusing to meet eye contact with Quistis.

"Seifer!" She called as he reached the door. Seifer ignored her and left.

Although he'd taken the slip with him, Quistis clearly remembered what was written:

_**One chance left, the Cerulean Ocean— Saturday at 8. **_

_ "I've changed my mind, I don't need these answers right this moment. You can take your time with mine too." Seifer grinned slyly narrowing his eyes. He removed his hand from hers and came to his feet. _

_"I didn't mean the exam, Instructor." He released a small chuckle and flicked a small wad of paper towards the desk. It landed silently on the tile floor and bounced once remaining a few feet from Quistis' chair._

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

The week went by quickly landing on the long awaited Saturday for Irvine and Rinoa's double date. Selphie wore her angelic white sundress from Edea with Irvine complimenting her wearing a white button down shirt and caramel slacks, of course never leaving his room without his black cowboy hat.

Rinoa dressed in long flaring turquoise dress with Squall in an almost all black ensemble. The four of them together made up quite an attractive group catching the eyes of every passersby. Selphie felt self-conscious amongst the group, as she was the paler and scrawnier of the bunch. Squall and Irvine were obviously strapping men to look at it, and Selphie always thought Rinoa glamorous and pretty.

So far, the four of them had remained rather quiet until coming to the lit up pavilions right on the edge of town. The ocean lulled softly in the night as the outdoor restaurant glowed by numerous candles and lamps.

Selphie watched in dazzled excitement as she'd never come to an outdoors restaurant, or eaten by the ocean. Rinoa and Irvine both had come to the location on several occasions, while Squall, being from Esther, a technologic wonderland, just didn't find it all that impressive.

They sat down and chatted casually, the table still not lively. As Rinoa feared, she still didn't feel that uneasy despite being with casual company. After they ordered drinks, Rinoa grew irritable and kicked Irvine under the table signaling him to leave with her for a moment.

The two walked a good distance from the table before they started speaking.

"What the heck is wrong with you?" Irvine hissed.  
"Me? You're being such a dud! Is this how you want Selphie to remember your first date? As a total BORE?" Rinoa barked angrily.  
"Hey, Selphie is entertained enough by just being here, my work is done! Which I can't say for you."

Meanwhile, back at the table, Irvine and Rinoa left the worst two people together to relish the awkward silence. Selphie eventually drew in enough of her surroundings and faced Squall who sat bored across the table. She'd only seen Squall with Rinoa and had never spoken to him.

"So, are you having fun?" She spurted randomly.

Squall, whose attention looked earlier focused on the oil lamp in the center of the table eyed Selphie curiously. He shrugged, "Not really."

"How can you say that! We're in such a pretty place, and you're with Rinoa!" Selphie squealed expecting Squall to leap into her whirlwind along with her.

He raised an eyebrow, and although his eyes were on Selphie still, he didn't seem attentive. At the time, he didn't have a completely blank face, it was as though he were internally having a conversation.

Selphie fiddled with her dress uncomfortably, "Um did you say something?"

Squall shook his head, "No."

Growing impatient with Squall, Selphie crossed her arms and sat back with a huff. "I know you're lying. You're having a great time. Every time you look at Rinoa, or she says something, you smile. I mean you're frowning most all other times but still." She gazed up and noticed a slight pink hue on Squall's face. "Heeeey! You're turning red!"

Returning to Rinoa and Irvine, the two of them stood heated in irritability. "Listen, let's both make an effort to get everyone talking. Selphie should be a snap, but Squall on the other hand, well you know what, once we all get a few drinks we should be fine." Irvine contemplated aloud. He turned back to the table and noticed Selphie giggling at Squall who held a hand to his face as if feeling his cheek.

"Is Selphie laughing?" Rinoa asked flatly. Still blinking in shock, Irvine looked carefully and replied.  
"I think so…"  
"Wow Irvine, maybe you brought just what the doctor ordered." She smiled brightly and turned to Irvine; along the way, her eye caught Seifer, who sat at the bar alone. "Is that who I think it is?"

Irvine, not hearing her said, "Hey I'm going to the restroom and I'll see ya back at the table."

Rinoa, too ignored Irvine, and walked towards Seifer, dressed in his SeeD uniform with a drink in his hand. "Seifer?" She called loudly getting his attention. Slowly, Seifer turned his head to Rinoa and forced a smile. "What're you doing here?" She asked.

Seifer shook the glass with its near empty contents swirling within, "Killing time I guess." He carefully observed Rinoa, "What're you doing? Girl's night out?"

Unsure of how to answer, Rinoa twiddled her foot on the floor and quickly muttered, "I'm on a date."

"Figures." Mumbled Seifer finishing the last of his drink. He slammed the glass down and waved his hand for another. "You look great though." He continued, not facing her. Rinoa, not sure how to take anything Seifer said, stayed quiet.

"I should get back." She said finally after a few awkward moments. As she turned around seeing her table still occupied with Squall and a giggly Selphie, Seifer called out again.

"Listen, I know this definitely isn't the time to talk, but I want you to know— I am sorry. You deserve so much better than what I did. I hope you enjoy your date, he's a lucky guy."

Rinoa's back still turned to Seifer; she smiled, and continued walking.

As Irvine left the bathroom, he crept through the narrow walking ways between tables. His eyes focused on his own, he failed to notice he bumped straight into a lady who'd just entered the area. "Sorry ma'am!" He said quickly tipping his hat. He took a closer look realizing who the lady was, "Instructor Trepe?"

Instructor Trepe patted her hair and smiled politely, "Hello Irvine, fancy seeing you here. On a date I presume?"

Irvine rubbed the back of his neck and shrugged, "I guess that's no surprise eh?" He looked at Instructor Trepe's attire of a an elegant cocktail dress, "But uh, what're you doing here?"

Bashful, Quistis pushed a lock of hair behind her ear and mumbled quietly, "I um, am o-on a date." She finally spilled.

"Oh great, have a good time then." He patted her on the shoulder and passed her finally getting back to his table. _That was weird… _

Irvine and Rinoa oddly enough returned to the table at the same time. "Hey guys, what's so funny?" Irvine asked taking his seat by Selphie.

"Squall's turning red! Look!" Selphie said ecstatically. Irvine examined Squall's face that had only deepened in color since Selphie first started the observation.

"Hey look at that!" Irvine continued in a hushed voice, "Careful Sefie, you don't want to make Squall angry, red is cute right now but doesn't always lead to good things!"

The two of them laughed while Squall squinted his eyes bitterly. Rinoa sat down beside Squall and was met with a small kiss on her cheek. She looked back at Squall surprised, and his cheeks finally began to fade in color.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Seifer sipped his drink as he looked across the restaurant to the table Rinoa had arrived too. It only took a few moments to put clear faces on the blurry figures. The smallest of the group with unusual hairstyle no doubt assumed the role of Selphie, Rinoa's roommate. Beside her just returning back to the table was without a doubt Kinneas. The last of the group sitting beside Rinoa had to be her date, but Seifer didn't want to admit what his eyes saw and his mind already knew.

A spark of anger sputtered in Seifer's eye as he watched Squall move his eye closely to Rinoa's. He gritted his teeth as he took in a large gulp of his drink. The liquid burned mercilessly down his throat as he tried to tear his eyes away from the scene.

He cheated on his girlfriend, attempted to blackmail a woman he loved, and spent most of his life hating a man who'd gotten close to both women! _Why the hell can't Pretty Boy find some other girls to play with_? Seifer thought bitterly with another sip.

"You seem rather occupied."

Seifer spun his head quickly to meet the speaker's eyes. Quistis' tranquil blue irises glittered in the dim lighting of the outdoor pavilion. She smiled gracefully as she pushed a lock of hair behind her ear. "I hope I'm not interrupting what looks like a mournful gaze."

Seifer blinked several times in shock of who had arrived. "What're you doing here?" He finally sputtered with more attitude than he intended.

Noticing this, Quistis raised an eyebrow. "I was hoping I could speak with you but I take it you're against that idea?"

"No!" Seifer exclaimed, causing Quistis to take a small step back. He paused and tried to make out a coherent thought before speaking again. A few moments passed while Quistis waited patiently for Seifer to continue. "What'd you come here for?" Seifer said softly hoping the question didn't sound as ungrateful as it normally did passing his lips.

"Like I said Seifer, I wanted to talk to you." Quistis looked towards the table in the distance housing the group of four the both of them knew. "I didn't know you'd be here, but I thought I'd come see. Unfortunately I don't think we can have a private discussion here."

Seifer stood up and gently took Quistis' hand into his. He swiftly pulled her closer and whispered, "The Balamb Hotel is nearby, we'll get a room and talk there. Stay here for a bit so no one notices us leaving together." Before Quistis could argue or add input, Seifer quickly laid some gil on the bar to pay for his past drinks and left the restaurant.

As Seifer requested, Quistis lingered alone for ten to fifteen minutes before leaving the restaurant. While exiting, she looked one last time at the familiar group chatting with each other. As she suspected from seeing the two together earlier, Irvine was accompanied by her pupil, Selphie. Across from them sat Rinoa and Squall. The four laughed and chatted more jovially than Quistis ever saw any of them. While Rinoa, Irvine and Selphie she observed to be happy people, Squall certainly wasn't, but there he sat with a small smile across his face.

She sighed loudly envious of their drama free relationships, and for a moment, she wished she was one of them instead of herself.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

"I was so embarrassed, and my dad," Rinoa lifted her hands in the finger making air quotes, "thought it'd be a good 'life lesson' for me and made me perform in front of the entire party!"

"I remember that dance, Rin, you should perform for Squall and Selphie here." Irvine said slyly watching Rinoa fume at his statement.

"Not in a million years!" She refuted crossing her arms stubbornly.

Squall sighed empathetically and said quietly, "At least your father didn't turn your home videos into a full length film."

Selphie, Irvine and Rinoa exchanged excited glances. "Can we see it!" Selphie squealed, "You were in a movie? How cool!"

Groaning inaudibly Squall covered his face with his hand, "It was only released in Esther.

"Man like father like son. Your dad was in a movie once too right?" Irvine added.

"It was some rendition of that." Squall muttered.

While Irvine and Selphie laughed excitedly planning how to get a copy Rinoa patted Squall's arm gently trying to hold back her laughter. "I bet it's adorable." Squall looked away almost ashamed.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Quistis entered the Balamb Hotel soundlessly, almost whispering to the receptionist when asking for Seifer's room. The entire week went by treacherously as she awaited the conversation to come. In her heart she felt pained by the idea that she couldn't be with Seifer, yet she remained conflicted knowing the complications it came with. Remembering Squall and Selphie enjoying their date, it only confirmed how she felt, she would not strip the right to a normal relationship from Seifer.

She reached the door to Seifer's room, but she couldn't bare to open it and commit the coup de grace on their insane and barely existent relationship. _He is your student Quistis, he is your student and a SeeD. What if you jeopardize the life and career you have only for something bad to happen to him anyways? _

The same discussion had echoed and repeated in her head throughout the week, and finally she would vocalize it. She hesitantly opened the door and entered.

Seifer sat at the foot of the bed silent. He stood upon Quistis' entrance and smiled his infamously sly smirk. "You wanted to talk to me Instructor?"

Quistis took a deep breath and walked over to Seifer. As she gazed deeply into his eyes, Seifer's smirk began to fade into a more sober look. Looking at his handsome face, Quistis forced herself to remember Selphie and Squall enjoying their date and how it'd be impossible for them to enjoy the same. _We couldn't have a normal relationship… _

"What's wrong?" Seifer said softly, his face serious.

Without replying, Quistis closed her eyes and pressed her lips to Seifer's. Leaving no time for hesitation, Seifer wrapped his arms around her trying to make the kiss last as long as he could. However, after a few moments, Quistis tore away, her eyes brimming with tears.

"I'm sorry," She breathed, "but I, I just wanted to wish you farewell. I won't drag you into my life of complications. You're my student Seifer, and I'm your instructor. We have to remain that way."

She began to walk towards the door, her heart heavy with regret. With every step, she fought the urge to not turn around and run back into Seifer's strong arms.

"I don't want you to get in trouble." Seifer said softly, "So I'll stop. Whatever you say, we'll do." Quistis stopped in her tracks listening to what he said. "But I'd wait, till we could be together."

"Don't." Quistis turned around and placed a hand to her chest, "Don't make me think we should be together Seifer! If you're waiting for me I'll— I'll just start to wait for you too and what if you go off on a mission and something happens to you?"

Seifer calmly filled the distance between them and swiftly scooped Quistis into his arms. He brushed away the strands of golden hair that'd made their way into Quistis' eyes and uttered, "Then wouldn't you regret not taking advantage of tonight?"

Lost for words Quistis looked helplessly into Seifer's eyes, too weak in willpower to try to break away. He brought his lips to hers, just barely touching, able to feel their subtle movement between breaths. "Seifer—" She said trying to pull away.

"Squall's an ass and Levi's gone, but me," Seifer paused to place a small kiss, "I'm here, and I want to be with you Instructor."

They kissed again breaking away to let Quistis say, "You can call me Quistis."

"I kinda like 'Instructor' now," Seifer replied with a smirk, "but whatever you say, Quistis. Don't go changing your mind on me again."

''''''''''''''''''''''''

As the group of four walked back through the empty courtyards of the entrance of Balamb Garden, they smiled of a night well played. Rinoa halfway through the walk home reached for Squall's hand, by the end of the walk they were linking arms with Rinoa leaning closely.

Selphie, a rather clueless girl to the dating world awkwardly imitated Rinoa. She stiffly held Irvine's hand and clutched his arm as if walking through a dark forest. Irvine didn't notice terribly as the group still spoke deep in lively conversation.

After the doors to enter the Garden came into view, Rinoa released Squall and slowly came to Irvine and Selphie whispering softly, "Hey do you two think you could take a detour or something? I kind of want to end things… alone."

Irvine tipped his hat and led Selphie to the side, just noticing how hard and frightened-like she'd been holding onto him. "We'll do just that." He winked and added loudly passed Rinoa, "G'night Squall!"

"Yeah we had fun!" Selphie added waving her free hand. The two stood in place as they watched Rinoa and Squall return hand in hand back indoors. After they'd gone out of sight Selphie turned back to Irvine cutely and smiled as if waiting for the next move.

Irvine pulled his hand free of Selphie's squeezing grasp. "So did you enjoy our first official date as boyfriend and girlfriend?" He asked lightly rubbing his reddened hand.

A small smile touched Selphie's lips as she nodded vigorously, "Oh Irvy! It was the best! I had so much fun!" She stepped closer and leaned her head back to meet Irvine's eyes. "Thanks." She leaned into him and relaxed, breathing softly as Irvine slowly put his arms around her.

"I'm glad you enjoyed."

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Quistis stepped out of the restroom with her hair thrown into a knot, as best as she could make without a hairbrush. She'd slept in and now morning came upon them and class was only an hour away. She had to return to Garden, shower, change and get to class without anyone really noticing she ever left.

Seifer noticed her nervousness as she paced the room uncomfortably while stuffing her feet roughly back into their stilettos. "You need to relax." He said calmly.

With a deep breath, Quistis turned around, "I will once I'm in class!" She snapped.

Despite her irritable behavior, Seifer didn't find any of this morning surprising. Quistis always struck him as a neurotic perfectionist, and a walk of shame living up to her expectation would be impossible. He could envision it now… Quistis walking into Garden with her hair a mess, dressed in cocktail dress at seven in the morning bashfully hasting towards the dorm, praying no one would talk or even notice her.

"I'll get us a cab." Seifer said, continuing his cool tone. He didn't seem at all fazed or bothered by his shabby appearance and disheveled uniform.

After hailing down a car, Seifer waited a few minutes for Quistis' settled appearance to arrive already blooming red as soon as she stepped into the morning sun. She sat beside Seifer and smiled politely at the driver, her cheeks still burning the entire ride back.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''

The world seemed to whistle a cheerier tune this morning. When Rinoa awoke, she saw Selphie nearly dancing about. She acknowledged she was late for class and couldn't find some of her notes, but nonetheless she leapt from corner to corner on her toes.

Rinoa smiled, as she herself couldn't even feign a bad mood. She informed Selphie she was leaving early and trotted off to meet Squall in the Training Center. Beaming the way she was, she purposely took a longer route, greeting every person she passed along the way in the happiest of manners.

She came to the main foyer of Garden, with the gates opened widely allowing the rising sun to pour within the tiled halls. _Oh, a walk outside sounds so much better than the Training Center. I'll go get Squall. _Beginning to turn away, Rinoa noticed someone rushing inside wearing a black cocktail dress. She waited until the figure became clearer to her before noticing it was Instructor Trepe.

Shocked out of her mind, Rinoa blinked several times as Instructor Trepe shuffled passed her and went down the hall. _I have to tell Irvine! But first my morning with Squall! _ Rinoa let the scene brush passed her current thoughts and found Squall finishing off some grats.

A few moments later they walked hand in hand back to the entrance of Garden when another person came forth.

Seifer stopped in his tracks appalled when Rinoa, her hands entwined with Squall's came towards him. In response, Squall completely ignored him and Rinoa started with a dark glare, and slowly softened her gaze eventually smiling thinly while squeezing Squall's hand tighter.

After they'd passed Seifer, Rinoa stopped Squall suddenly, and without a word of explanation she kissed Squall victoriously, finally feeling avenged from Seifer's betrayal.

'''''''''''''''''''

All class long Irvine lost focus from his instructor's lecture and gazed about the night before. Selphie's simple gesture of hugging him and thanking him for their night had repeated in his mind continuously. There few moments that ever felt so vivid and clear in his memory. The first night he'd met Selphie and almost kissed her and the night they actually kissed in rain were amongst the few cemented recollections that felt so clear he felt as though he were reliving it each time. Since the night he'd met Selphie, he'd carried her, slept beside her, and kissed her… yet still just the few spare moments where something as simple as hug occurred mesmerized him.

Despite the fact he'd been with many other women in far more intimate ways, there was something unexplainable about his time with Selphie.

Still lost in thought, a new screen blinking on his studying panel caught his attention breaking him out of his thoughts. A black conversation screen from Balamb Garden BBS blinked brightly. Irvine stared at it carefully reading the message.

**Rinoa C. :**

**Oh I have so much to tell you! **

Irvine looked to his side at Rinoa who busily began typing up the next message she was going to send. He shrugged and returned a reply.

**Kinneas GSE : **

**Does it explain why you were late to class?**

**Rinoa C. :**

**So I was meeting Squall up before class and on my way I saw Instructor Trepe coming into Garden all dressed up, well sort of. Her hair was all messed up, weird right?**

**Rinoa C. :**

**And no it does not explain why I was late to class—Jerk.**

**Irvine GSE : **

**That is weird, you know I saw her last night too, at the restaurant. She said she had a date. Hey! Instructor Trepe got lucky!**

**Rinoa C. :**

**That's not all, on my way out with Squall, we bumped into Seifer and he saw us walking out holding hands. It was the best revenge moment ever! You should've seen the look on his face!**

**Wait a minute, you saw Instructor Trepe last night too? Oh my goodness! I wonder who she was with!**

**Irvine GSE :**

**Must be some person from town, I didn't see any instructors or anybody else from Garden over there. **

**Rinoa C. :**

**Yeah, just us and Seifer.**

**Irvine GSE :**

**Seifer was there too?**

**Rinoa C. :**

**Yeah at the bar, drinking it up. Must've gotten too drunk to drive, he was coming back to Garden this morning. **

**Irvine GSE :**

**So you saw Seifer AND Instructor Trepe coming back to Garden this morning?**

**Rinoa C. : **

**Stop getting ideas Irvine, they weren't together! **

**Irvine GSE :**

**Fiiine, so why were you late?**

Rinoa exited out of her Garden BBS and sat back listening intuitively to Instructor Akii, leaving a very frustrated cowboy beside her.

(PS- GSE stands for Greatest Sniper Ever)

'''''''''''''''''''''''

Once class departed, Instructor Trepe bashfully watched all her students leave praying no one would come up to her and comment about seeing her in a cocktail dress this morning. Luckily either none of her students noticed her, knew it was her, or cared to confront her.

At last, the class emptied leaving only the lingering trio of the Trepies and Seifer, quietly sitting in the back awaiting her personal fan club to leave. Quistis listened to fawning of her adoring groupies and dismissed them leaving Seifer alone with her.

"Well it looks like we did it, a full day and no one suspects a thing." Seifer said slyly approaching Quistis' desk.

With a small smile, Quistis turned to Seifer, relieved and relaxed to be alone with him again. "Mission success, you're on quite the roll." She rested her arms on his shoulders and leaned against her desk. Observing him closely, Quistis noticed slight hesitation on Seifer's part. "Is something wrong?"

Seifer turned his head away while his posture stiffed. "Why do you think that?"

"I just sense something is all, what's wrong?" Quistis replied calmly. "You know Headmaster Cid may not require me to hold sessions still, but I think I can afford to allot you some time."

"You're not getting paid for this." Seifer said sarcastically.

"Perhaps not in currency." Quistis uttered softly, immediately turning red afterwards, shocked she'd let something so uncouth slip passed her lips. However, her words, well received by Seifer who laughed heartily and relaxed taking a seat near her as her words had served their purpose.

"I found out Rinoa is dating Squall." Seifer said flatly after letting his chuckles subside and regaining a few moments of quietness.

Quistis blinked at him several times, "You didn't know?"

Returning her blinking surprise, Seifer arched his eyebrow, "You did?"

"By Hyne Seifer! Everyone knows, you haven't seen them walking into this very classroom together? She was even on a date with him at the restaurant you were at last night!"

Seifer sat appalled, "How long have they been together? We didn't break up that long ago!"

Quistis massaged her temples realizing she probably only fueled the flames burning in Seifer. She sighed and bent forward placing a small kiss on his cheek, "Forget about them Seifer, if they're happy why does it concern you? I'm sure you still care about Rinoa, she deserves to be happy," lowering her voice, Quistis pushed off her desk inching closer to Seifer, "as do I."

Smirking slightly, Seifer wrapped an arm around Quistis and gazed into her sapphire eyes, "Well at least I got something Squall doesn't—" He leaned in to kiss her before a quick thought rushed through his head causing him to jerk back, "BUT HE COULD'VE!"

He came to his feet sharply, nearly causing Quistis to land on the floor. "Seifer! That's not true, I would never actually have been with Squall! We barely were able to speak to each other." She called out gathering her balance.

"Wrong, he never spoke to you. If he did, **YOU TWO **would've been the Instructor/Student affair, and I'd be the distraction hour that kept you two apart annoyingly everyday." Seifer huffed off into a pace even more fired up.

Not focusing on what came before him, Quistis leapt in front and stopped his incessant angry march. She gently rested her small hands against his chest and smiled serenely, melting Seifer's furious grimace into a straight face. "You would've just swept me off my feet again showing me how I didn't want to be with him. You've never and never will be the 'distraction hour.'" Quistis laughed gently and was met by a sweet yet shallow kiss from Seifer.

The door hummed softly as the electronics whirred letting in Selphie who stopped in her tracks as she looked upon the kissing couple.

Quistis and Seifer broke away instantly and the three exchanged shocked glances to other. No one spoke for a few moments until finally Seifer mumbled, "Speaking of the distraction hour…"

Selphie blinked and took a step backwards, "S-sorry to bother you guys! I'll get out of here!" With that, she rushed out of the classroom and down the hall. A moment later, she heard Seifer's angry voice calling out 'STOP'. Frantic at his fuming tone, Selphie ran faster leading her to a dead end of the hall. The only choices was an Emergency Exit door blinking red, and a large metal door that had no sign to what was beyond it. She heard Seifer yelling again, and without thinking, she rushed through the heavy metal door finding herself locked at a small balcony with an expansive view of the Garden courtyards below.

_I should've taken that other door!_ Selphie thought miserably as she considered her options of jumping off the balcony.

A boom came from the door as Seifer shoved it open. He slowed down as he entered, breathing heavily and eying Selphie awkwardly. "What the hell? I said stop!"

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to bother you guys!" Selphie cried helplessly, "Please don't hurt me!"

Seifer sighed irritably and combed his fingers through his hair as the wind blew softly. "Stop crying and I'll consider it." Selphie nodded in response as she wiped her face with her sleeve and kept her mouth shut. Squinting his eyes judgmentally, Seifer walked forward and placed his hands on the balcony, "Well, you going to say something?"

Selphie shook her head vigorously, although Seifer wasn't looking at her.

"If you keep your mouth shut about what you saw in there, we won't have any problems. Say even one word to anyone, and I'll come get you, got it?" Seifer said coldly.

"What about Rinoa?" Selphie asked meekly.  
"Especially not Rinoa!" Seifer growled looking at the trembling girl fiercely in the eyes.  
"But you guys are close aren't you?"

Seifer laughed sardonically as he faced the view again. "We're exes, exes on bad terms. We're not close, and as the situation is right now, I'd prefer it remain that way."

"But you were her boyfriend, for awhile right? I mean you two really care about each other, how can you just forget about that?" Selphie took a small step towards Seifer, "I mean just because you guys don't want to be with each other, you have so many memories, and special moments—" Selphie gazed towards the view herself and sighed, "I just think if you can stay in touch, you should. Maybe it's weird, but if you guys can stop being so mad at each other, you could be friends still." _If only Mr. Devin wasn't so mad at me…_

Seifer looked at Selphie with squinted distrustful eyes. Although what she said sounded ideal, he didn't want to give her satisfaction and agree with her. "Just keep what you saw to yourself, alright?" Selphie nodded again as he turned towards the exit. He stopped and exhaled loudly, "You know, you're not as annoying as I thought you were."

Smiling brightly, Selphie beamed and clasped her hands together. "Tee-hee! Thanks! You're not as mean as everyone says!"

About to retort, Seifer found himself interrupted by the heavy door booming as Irvine entered the small balcony. "Kinneas? What the hell are you doing here?" He snapped.

"Instructor Trepe said you two went this way, better question: what are **you two** doing?" Irvine bounced back as he looked from Selphie to Seifer.

Selphie jumped on her tiptoes, "Oh! We were just talking about me to not telling anyone about him kissing—s" Seifer immediately grasped Selphie by the chin and pressed his lips to hers stopping her from finishing her statement and leaving the worse kind of expression on Irvine's face.

"Kissing her," Seifer said releasing Selphie from his hold. "I told her not to tell anyone about **us** kissing. But looks like the secret's out Kinneas." He looked at the cowboy with a devious glare with immeasurable joy, knowing just how angry his little gesture made him. Coolly, he swept passed him and exited. _That should be enough of a distraction_, Seifer thought evilly.

Irvine blinked and finally turned around, fuming and ready to pummel Seifer. "Wait!" Selphie cried out grabbing Irvine's arm.

"Before I kill that arrogant son of a bitch, did you tell him he could kiss you!" Irvine snapped angrily.

"Irvy please! We were just talking about him and Rinoa, and I think he just wanted to mess with you. Just leave him alone, please?"

With a loud exhale of frustration, Irvine stopped resisting and looked at Selphie. Despite the hostility he couldn't explain, Selphie's innocent look of desperation sunk in. He sighed loudly and rubbed the back of his neck mumbling the next words slowly and painfully as if chewing glass, "If he ever does that again, pu-leeeese let me kill him."

Selphie giggled as she hugged Irvine as tightly as she could. "I promise Irvy."

A/N: I do not own Secretariat (the reference of the movie "Secretary") That is a creation of Disney. I also don't own Hungry Hungry Hippos (the reference of the game Cheeky Chirpy Chocobos) I don't know who made that though… Neither of which have I watched or played oddly enough.


	38. Chapter 37

_"Hakanaku sugiteyuku hibi no naka de,"_  
_("As these fleeting days pass by,)_

_Beautiful World  
__Chapter Thirty-Seven_

Seifer walked back to class, still a little too pleased with himself about infuriating Irvine. He passed through the electronic doors to see Quistis pacing back and forth biting her thumb, a habit Seifer had never witnessed Quistis do. Her head jerked up towards immediately as she stopped her pacing and watched Seifer come to her with wide eyes.

"Well? So much for a mission success." She sighed hopelessly.

"I don't think we have to worry about her." Seifer said calmly placing his hands on her small shoulders.

Quistis broke away and covered her mouth with both hands, "You didn't kill her did you?"

"No!" Seifer snapped back, _although that would've been a good idea… _He smiled wistfully and stepped back towards the exit of the room, "I just have a good feeling, and if anything happens, I'll take care of it." He kissed the tip of his fingers, flicked them in Quistis' direction with a sly grin, and left the room.

Having to spend most of her life independent and strong willed of her own, hearing someone say those words to her felt more reassuring and comforting than anything else.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Wary of Seifer's odd behavior, and Selphie's compliance with all men, Irvine decided to make it a point of not leaving her alone until the Garden understood firmly that she was **his **girlfriend. The fact that Selphie wouldn't go into great detail about what Seifer and her discussed on the balcony before he interrupted bothered him, but Selphie struck him as a simple girl, and hadn't hidden much anyways.

The next morning Irvine awoke early to meet Selphie at her dorm and walk her to Edea's class. He certainly didn't mind being late for his own class, and having a chance to kiss Selphie in the morning made all the more sweeter.

After class he squandered his time in the Training Center with Zell until it was time for Matron's class to end and Instructor Trepe's to begin. Irvine promptly met Selphie at the Headmaster's office and walked with her to the second floor classrooms.

The two stepped into Instructor Trepe's classroom calmly and greeted the blonde teacher who, as normal, sat behind her desk. "Selphie, Irvine!" She called out rather surprised.

"We do have class, right Instructor?" Feebly Selphie asked unsure of Instructor Trepe's shock.

A moment of awkward silence passed before Quistis forced a gentle laugh and replied, "Well of course. I just— forgot. I'm just a bit scrambled is all. Anyways," Instructor Trepe pushed a lock of hair behind her ear and turned to Irvine, "do you mind Irvine? We should get started."

"Not at all ladies," Irvine said tipping his hat. He left a kiss on Selphie's cheek and let himself out leaving Quistis and Selphie alone again in an awkward silence.

Selphie took her seat at an empty study panel and shifted uncomfortably as Instructor Trepe had not spoken or moved for several minutes since Irvine walked out. "Instructor…?" Still, Quistis had stirred little and said not a word.

A few more moments passed until Instructor Trepe bashfully looked at Selphie and spoke quietly. "Selphie, I'm mortified you saw what you did yesterday."

Selphie tilted her head and thought for a moment, a few feelings went through her mind as she suddenly remembered Seifer and Quistis kissing the day before. "OH!" She cried out in realization. She laughed cutely and continued, "Don't worry about it Instructor, I mean, Rinoa is dating Squall anyways so it's really no big deal."

Quistis opened her mouth to speak, but the words failed her. "—Wait what?" She bluntly spilled.

"Seifer already talked about it to me anyways. You two shouldn't have to hide it, I mean it's not fair that Rinoa has a new boyfriend but Seifer is hiding his new girlfriend, or is it wrong because he cheated on her? I don't really know the whole story I just hear Rinoa calling Seifer some real mean names." Selphie babbled effortlessly without realizing Quistis looked somewhat confused. Once concluding whatever she knew on the subject she ended with, "… but no matter what, I'll listen to what Seifer said and won't tell anyone! I mean I almost told Irvy yesterday but Seifer stopped me with a kiss."

"WHAT?" Quistis snapped coming to her feet hastily.

Selphie held out her hands reassuringly, "No, no! It's okay! Irvy isn't mad about it, I calmed him down. It was my fault, see I accidentally said Seifer was kissing someone so he kissed me to confuse Irvy."

Quistis had her arms crossed sharply, obviously not pleased with what she heard. _What is wrong with this girl? Doesn't she know anything about relationships? _She inhaled deeply trying to appreciate the fact Selphie didn't think wrongly of anything she saw. Therefore, she'd have less incentive to want to tell anyone regardless. Quistis' shoulders relaxed as she relieved some of her tension and sat back down. "Thank you for your honesty Selphie, I don't think you understand just how complicated things are, for that reason I'd be most grateful if you did keep what you saw under wraps."

Selphie nodded enthusiastically, "Of course Instructor! I won't say a word!" She covered her lips and giggled, "Unlike yesterday."

Instructor Trepe grinned at Selphie's childish behavior and nodded as the worst passed, and she could face her again without some awkward moment. They resumed their class happily without further mention of Quistis and Seifer's affair.

Once class finally ended, prompt as before, Irvine arrived at Instructor Trepe's class. The two picked up some food from the cafeteria and proceeded to Selphie's dorm. Luckily for them, Rinoa was still out for the day. Irvine and Selphie sat down for their meal while Irvine slipped out a deck of Triple Triad to play. Selphie understood little of the game but made herself determined to collect a deck of "cute" cards. While Irvine knew there were no such things as cute monsters, he chuckled at her attempt.

Selphie held her sandwich with one hand and fumbled with her collection of Fungars, Gaylas, and Blobras in the other. Irvine watched as she played each weak card after the other and resisted his competitiveness to take advantage of the opportunity and finally attain some wins for once.

Their afternoon went on peacefully with games and conversations until finally a knocked interrupted them.

Eyeing the door carefully, Selphie looked back to Irvine, "Who do you think it is? Rinoa?"

"Prolly not, Rin wouldn't knock." Irvine replied calmly not as alarmed by the knock as Selphie, _she'd come busting in with her arms wrapped around Seifer in my experience. _A sly smile touched his lips as Selphie cautiously went to the door and answered.

Out in the hall stood Edea, gracefully smiling with her hands collected in front of her. "Hello Selphie," She started brightly. "Worry not, I'm not here to quiz you or bring you in for class!" She added quickly noticing Selphie's shock to her arrival. "I actually came to let you know that both Instructor Trepe and I are giving you the day off tomorrow. With all your progress I fully believe you deserve it, so go and enjoy yourself!"

Selphie jumped up and down in place, "Oh thank you Matron!" She squealed. Edea bowed gently and glided down the corridor as Selphie closed the door behind her. "Oh Irvy did you hear?"

Irvine smiled with a twinkle in his eye. He swiftly came to his feet, "I sure did, and I think—" he swooped in ever closer to Selphie, "that we oughta spend every moment through tomorrow together, just you and me."

Gasping cutely, Selphie put a hand over her mouth, "Really? What'll we do with so much time?"

"I could think of a few things," Irvine said sneakily. He gingerly held Selphie's hand in his and pulled her into his arms, "is there something ya wanna do though?"

Selphie squealed excitedly, "We have so much time! We could fight sooo many monsters!"

A small inaudible sigh escaped Irvine as he forced a chuckle, "Sure Selphie, let's go." His tiny girlfriend slipped through his arms and retrieved her giant knunchuks. Together they went to Balamb fields to fight Bite Bugs and Caterchipillars to Selphie's content.

When it started to grow dark, they went to the outskirts of Balamb and picked up food from a cart and began to make way to Garden. Selphie dragged on constantly gazing at the sky above.

"Are ya looking for somethin'?" Irvine asked after noticing her doing this for five minutes.

"Just looking at the stars." Selphie replied dreamily as she moved from one tip-toe to the other clumsily.

Irvine stopped and looked up. Amongst the deep satin blue, millions of stars glimmered. "Yeah they're sure something. When I was in Galbadia, you never saw a star, ya could never dream to see this many." He rubbed the back of his neck curiously and turned back to Selphie, who still arched her neck upwards. "Didn't they have stars in Trabia?"

Selphie brought her head down and looked to Irvine with a shrug. "Yeah they were there— I just never **looked **at them. Plus, they never looked like this."

Taking in the view, Irvine smiled to himself. _Yeah they do look brighter now_, "Something about tonight I guess." He stepped off the road, only a bit and sat down against the cool refreshing grass.

Tilting her head, Selphie looked at Irvine oddly, "What're you doing Irvy?"

Irvine patted the ground next to him, "C'mon, let's sit here for now. It's really a nice night." Beaming, Selphie clapped her hands together and skipped to his side. She snuggled comfortably beside Irvine and gazed upward.

The two leaned back and pointed through the sky making pictures and laughing about what they saw. They eventually laid on their backs and relaxed allowing the moonlight and twinkling stars to shine on them.

"That cluster over there, see it?" Irvine stretched his long arm out to the right, "It looks just like the Galbadian Insignia."

Selphie tried to make out the collection of stars to no avail. "Galbadia… have you ever been there?"

"'Course, I was born in Deling City. Although I don't much remember that. I spent my childhood in Galbadia Garden mostly."

Intrigued, Selphie leaned her head to look at Irvine, "You're Galbadian?" She asked in awe, "Irvy what's it like there?"

"Heh, it's nice, just busy and crowded. Big cities, I liked it a lot, and one day I'll move back, after I see the rest of the world. I only really know Deling City, since it's only a train ride from Galbadia Garden."

"You've been in Garden since you were a kid?"

"Yeah, my parents were both in the Galbadian army ya see, and a wartime base is really no place for a kid, so my parents sent me to Garden."

Selphie smiled, "Your parents? I've never heard you talk about them, what're they like?"

"I dunno remember much, I was pretty young when they died… I was already in Garden when it happened. I know my mom was a medic, and my dad a soldier. Made me proud to be in Garden though, to one day be like them."

Selphie bit her lip, "Sorry Irvy,"

"You didn't know Sefie, don't you worry." He wrapped an arm around her and rubbed her shoulder. "When my parents died, the orphanages were already overfilled with kids who lost their parents in the war, so Galbadia Garden just kept me." He looked at Selphie, "I guess you lost your parents too?" He asked hesitantly.

Shrugging casually, Selphie thought a moment. Talking about her parents never bothered her, as she never had much to remember losing. "I was really young, I don't remember them at all. I lived in an orphanage in Trabia until I was ten. It was so fun Irvy, there was so many other kids and we had school, it was like being here! –Well, here's a lot nicer of course, hehe."

"You lived in an orphanage? Then how'd you end up on the streets?" Irvine asked bluntly without thinking. A moment passed before he realized the rudeness of his question. "I—I mean, you don't have to answer that if ya don't want."

Not even slightly taken aback Selphie simply gazed back into the sky, "It doesn't bother me. The orphanage stopped getting money or something like that. The keepers were really worried and they tried really hard to make it work on their own, but we didn't get much food or clothes anymore and I saw kids who went out and begged got lots of stuff. So, I started joining them, and one day… I just stopped coming back. It's okay though, because I met Mr. Devin."

_There's that name again… Mr. Devin. _Irvine thought to himself.

"I don't think Mr. Devin wants to ever see me again though… he's real mad at me. Cause' I left Trabia I suppose." Selphie continued softly and sadly.

"How do you know he's mad?"

Selphie pursed her lips; she'd never told Irvine that Devin came to visit her. She herself hated thinking of his trip and tried her best to forget the awful event entirely. "I- just a feeling I have." She lied quietly.

Irvine didn't pry, instead he turned to his side and face Selphie. "Y'know, I know a lot of terrible things happened to you Sefie, but somehow, I'm glad— because if they hadn't happened I would never met you at that fountain. Meeting you, it's gotta be one of the best things in that's ever happened to me."

Selphie's eyes brimmed with tears and leaked towards the side of her face, "Really Irvy? You mean that?"

Deciding to answer with actions versus words, Irvine slipped both arms around her and kissed her softly. Rather still, Selphie very hesitantly returned Irvine's embrace. After feeling Selphie's arms on him, Irvine let his hand sneak its way into Selphie's hair holding her face closer and intensifying their kiss. After a few moments, Irvine broke their kiss and pressed his lips against Selphie's neck. Her soft skin felt amazing against his lips, as he moved his hands to her waist.

Selphie gasped in delight as Irvine continued to kiss her throat, hungry for her contact. He slid his hand down further on her thigh pressing gently until he reached the rim of her uniform's skirt. Finally meeting the skin of her leg, Irvine skimmed her thigh rising higher. He pressed harder as his hand moved upward. His thumb felt a deep scab and his ears rang as he heard Selphie's scream.

Immediately Irvine released Selphie and came to his knees looking about frantically. "Are you okay? Am I going too fast?" He noticed Selphie running her hand over her thigh. Breathing in deeply to catch his breath he waited, panicked for Selphie's reply. "Sefie?"

Weakly, Selphie spoke, "I'm sorry Irvy." She sounded like she was sobbing. "It just—still hurts."

Unsure to what she referred to, Irvine inspected her closely and vaguely remembered taking Selphie to the infirmary for a bad injury. He returned his view to her thigh, that Selphie still rubbed lightly. "Sefie…" He breathed, "I'm so sorry. I can't believe it still didn't heal."

Selphie sat up still holding her thigh and squeezing her eyes, unable to deal with the stinging of her scar. "It healed, kinda it just—" She breathed in deeply and exhaled a small groan of pain, "just hurts if I press against it. Dr. Kadowaki says it looks good and the bandage came off already."

Irvine came to his feet and reached out for Selphie's hand, helping her stand as well. "Selphie, I am— really sorry."

"It's okay Irvy, it is." She said quietly between broken breaths. "Let's lay back down, we were having fun. I don't want to spoil it." Her hands still fastened in Irvine's, were met with a kiss. Selphie blushed as she met eyes with her handsome cowboy who smiled back at her. He gently nudged her arm forward and swooped her light little frame easily into his arms lifting her right off the ground.

"It's getting late, maybe we should go back." He said quietly. _Wherever this night was supposed to go… I guess it's better that it be well lit!_

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Selphie blinked her eyes open rapidly adjusting to the morning light. She stretched her arms out slowly lifting herself up before looking around the room. A small sleeping mumble sounded beside her as she jolted back to see Irvine lying as her former pillow. He hesitantly opened his airy blue eyes and gazed about finally seeing Selphie sitting at the foot of the bed facing him.

"Mornin' sunshine." He yawned groggily.

Tilting her head cutely, Selphie asked, "What happened last night? I don't remember anything after we were looking at the stars."

Irvine reached his arms upwards and stretched out his long torso as he came up to a sitting position. He yawned loudly as he began to ponder aloud, "Well that's just it, nothin' happened after that. You were already asleep by the time we got here so I just said, 'hell with it' and slept here." Selphie looked sad in response to this. Not intending to get that reaction from her, Irvine inched closer with a smile and continued, "That's okay, we got all day to do whatever we want!"

"You have class Irvy." Selphie said quietly, still feeling guilty.

"I'll skip, I've been awfully present lately."

"No Irvy, you shouldn't. Plus we'll be free all day afterwards, I don't have anything to do. I'll be waiting for you—" Selphie pushed the tip of her finger against the bed and traced it to Irvine, "right here till you get back."

Irvine squinted his eyes only partially pleased with the plan. He entwined his fingers with Selphie's and lifted her hand to his lips. "Right here?"

Selphie nodded.

"Okay fine, I'll go to class. Under one condition— when I'm out of class I see you in my dorm ready to do anything! Deal?"

Almost giddy, Selphie leapt to her feet. "Deal Irvy!" Content, Irvine sprang to his feet, stretched out his arm for Selphie to hold onto, and led themselves out of the room.

Out in the common room stood an unusual sight. Irvine and Selphie halted awkwardly in their tracks upon seeing Rinoa lip locked deeply with Squall. Intentionally, Irvine coughed loudly breaking the two up bashfully.

"Oh good morning guys!" Rinoa said cheerfully. Squall met their eyes shortly and looked away. He swept pass Rinoa and muttered quietly, 'See you after class'. "Wait, Squall!" Rinoa cried running after him.

Selphie and Irvine exchanged glances before cupping their mouths and laughing at Rinoa's embarrassment. "Man Selphie, I just saw the weirdest thing in the world." Irvine managed to slip out without releasing too many chuckles.

Rinoa stormed back into the room furious. "Good job!" She crossed her arms and fell back into a chair. "Don't you have class or something?"

Selphie shook her head happily, "Nope! Not today! I'm free. Irvy has class though." She patted his shoulder proudly.

Irvine shrugged mockingly as he threw Rinoa a sneaky smile, "Plus Rin, didn't know Squall got scared so easily. You know he's a lot tougher in the battlefield. You might just not be doing your job right." He added with a snicker. Rinoa squinted her eyes evilly and snatched her books off the study table ready to leave for class. Realizing the time for class arrived, Irvine looked back at Selphie, resistant to leave. Selphie patted his arm sweetly and smiled.

"I'll be there right after class Irvy." She said. Irvine kissed her on the cheek and tipped his hat her way as he exited the dorm behind Rinoa.

Although a bit miffed with Irvine, Rinoa's curiosity took the best of her as she tried to casually bring up conversation again. "So…" She started slowly waiting for Irvine's reaction. When he made so objection to her relinquishing her former attitude, she continued. "So what's happening after class?"

Irvine looked to Rinoa with a small grin, "Aw nothin', he started, "I just told her to meet me at my room after class." Rinoa raised her eyebrow judgingly to this. "Don't gimme that!" Irvine snapped, "Get your head out of the gutter. It's not like that."

"Speaking of what it's not like," A sly smile touched Rinoa's lips, "have you and Selphie—"

"No." Irvine spat flatly knowing well ahead where Rinoa intended to take the conversation. He looked ahead ignoring Rinoa's glare he knew she was giving him. A few moments of silence passed before she began to pry again.

"I don't get it, why not? I mean from what you told me about her past, and recently with Nida, she doesn't strike me as the kind of girl to say no." Rinoa pushed a lock of hair behind her ear and looked to Irvine again, "Then what's the wait? Don't get me wrong, I find your new act of celibacy kind of refreshing, but as I usually see you two waking at the same time and place anyways it's not like I'd know any better."

"It's just that Rin," Irvine started softly, hesitant to let other passersby hear him. Assured that there was no one in an earshot he continued, "She wouldn't say no to anyone! I don't want to be just anyone, I want to be— the one." Feeling bashful for never having spoken so sentimentally, Irvine brought his hat over to cover most of his face. "I want things to be different, for both of us."

"It will be," Rinoa added quickly causing Irvine to lift his hat and meet eyes with her. "It will be, because both of you are so happy, and in love." She smiled brightly, her eyes shining with sincerity.

Irvine released a small chuckle, "Like you and Squall?"

With a small shrug Rinoa gazed on her smile never leaving her face, "We're getting there." She stopped abruptly spotting someone in the hall. Seifer leaned against the wall, appearing as though he were waiting for someone. _Is he waiting for me? How'd he know I'd even come this way? Well these are the girl dormitories, there's not that many ways through it. _"Seifer?" She asked aloud, causing Irvine to stop and take notice as well.

Pushing himself off the wall, Seifer turned to Rinoa and Irvine, shining his infamously sly grin. His face said all he wanted to say 'Morning, I won't say it's good but if leave me alone I won't ruin yours.'

"What're you doing here?" Rinoa continued her voice sounding sterner.

"Waiting," Replied Seifer flatly.

"For who?"

"For—" Seifer trailed off as a door across them opened and Instructor Trepe appeared. She wore her SeeD uniform and an elegant as she tossed her head allowing her hair, free of any pins to fall back passed her shoulder.

She looked at the three students and politely bowed her head, "Good morning you three, what are you up to?"

The three of them exchanged glances, as though waiting for someone to reply to her. Seifer held his hands out and took a step back towards Quistis. "Nothing at all Instructor, I was just waiting for you. I had a question for you about an assignment you graded." He smiled at Quistis who showed no new emotion.

"I have no intention of changing your grade but walk and talk with me, we'll discuss whatever the problem is." Quistis looked over Seifer's shoulder and smiled goodbye to the other students, dismissing herself with Seifer.

Irvine rubbed the back of his neck bored, "Well that was a waste of time." He yawned.

"Seifer's been acting so weird lately, haven't you noticed?" Rinoa said calmly in a hushed tone.

"Uh, no. He's always been an arrogant jackass, he's just now your **ex** arrogant jackass." Irvine continued bored and annoyed still.

"I mean for starters, he's so attached to Instructor Trepe, I mean he's like the Trepie never initiated." Rinoa looked to Irvine, "I mean isn't that a little strange?"

"They did used to have all those detention hours together, they're probably like best buds—"

"At the ball, Seifer's first dance was with Instructor Trepe. Wherever you see him, Instructor's not far, she almost always shows up a few minutes later or before. O-or don't you think it's odd the one day Instructor Trepe cancels class, Seifer got into a fight with Zell?"

"He's always getting in fi—" Irvine attempted to point out

"And then he was in such a hurry to get out of that infirmary! I mean he was in no condition to get up, but he was in a rush for something. He probably didn't want Instructor Trepe to see him there. Not to mention that night when we were out together, you saw Instructor Trepe, and I saw Seifer. Plus the next morning they were coming back at the same time—maybe not together."

"Couldn't that just be a bunch of coincidences? I mean, I don't want to rub salt in your wounds Rin, but if Seifer had a thing for Instructor Trepe, wouldn't he had an affair with her instead of Scarlet?" Irvine said rather pleadingly to get off the subject.

Rinoa clasped her hands together, "Irvine! You're right! I mean it makes sense! That night at the ball, Seifer left hours earlier than you and Scarlet, he was probably with Instructor Trepe and he used Scarlet to hide it!" After Rinoa relished in her victory of unfolding Seifer's mystery, she stopped scowled, "That scheming bastard!"

Irvine stopped and pondered all he knew on the subject, thinking aloud he listed, "Dated you, slept with Scarlet, kissed Selphie… eh I really don't see where Instructor Trepe falls in with that mix." He stopped Rinoa and looked at her concerned, "Listen that's a pretty big accusation that could get Instructor Trepe into a lot of trouble, for like no reason. So just keep your little theory to yourself, eh?"

Rinoa blinked several times, "When did he kiss Selphie?"

Still bothered from the whole event, Irvine shook his head, "Never mind that. Just let's keep it to ourselves, alrighty?"

"But Irvine, even you thought that they might be—"

"I was just kidding! Come on, let's get to class." Irvine grasped Rinoa's wrist dragging her behind him not allowing himself to pay attention to another word she said.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Selphie twiddled her feet as she leaned back and forth on her bed. A part of her wished she had asked Irvine to stay with her instead of go to class, but she had come to value education as she'd only recently received it.

She released a long drawn sigh wondering how long Irvine would be in class. His class always ended earlier than her class with Matron and hours earlier than Instructor Trepe's.

Selphie wasn't left to her thoughts for too long as a knock sounded at the door. Angelo barked suspiciously as the people who would normally visit wouldn't show at this time. Patting Angelo reassuringly, Selphie walked to the door and opened it. Outside in the hall stood a deeply robed Garden Faculty, one of the many assistants to the headmaster.

As normal, his entire body was clothed in layers of draping material, while his head was completely covered in the shadow of a wide hat. "Selphie Tilmitt?" He asked sternly.

Selphie shuddered slightly, as the Garden Faculty's menacing and mysterious appearance always frightened her a bit. "That's me." She replied meekly.

"Headmaster Cid calls you to his office at once, you are to come with me."

Angelo sniffled as Selphie waved goodbye and closed the door behind her. She followed the assistant through the halls of the dormitories to the main artery of Garden. Selphie felt too nervous to ask whether this meeting was leading to trouble, and the assistant felt no need to explain to her why they were going. In fact, he said nothing at all. In response neither did Selphie. However, her growing curiosity ate at her as she finally spoke up upon entering the elevator.

"Um excuse me?" She started softly and hesitantly.

"Do not dilly-dally." The assistant retorted soberly waiting Selphie to enter the capsule with him.

"Oh I'm not!" Selphie said defensively hopping in after him. "I just wanted to know, why do you dress like that. Aren't you hot?"

The assistant said nothing to her as he pressed the number to the Headmaster's office causing the doors to close. Once the elevator began to hum and move upwards, the assistant shook his arm allowing the draping clothes to shift aside until Selphie could see his long, yellow, spindly fingers. Selphie covered her mouth to halt her gasp of horror.

"We are Shumi. Shumi live deep underground far in Trabia. We live in the frigid cold; we live near the hottest core of the Earth. There is no condition of climate we cannot bear."

Selphie's horror melted away as she smiled brightly, "I'm from Trabia too!" She announced proudly.

The assistant put his arm down allowing his long sleeves to hide his hand again. "That concerns me not." He said quietly thus ending their conversation. Selphie turned sadly away as the elevator lurched and stopped. The doors beeped sounding as the doors smoothly opened to Headmaster and Headmistress Kramer's regal office.

Selphie had come into the office countless of times; however, she usually went towards the door on the side of the room leading to Matron's office and makeshift classroom. The assistant led her to a set of grand double doors to Headmaster Cid's office, where she seldom ventured.

Hesitantly, Selphie walked into the brightly lit room with an expansive skylight allowing all the brightness of the day into the office. On an ornate throne sat Headmaster Cid resting comfortably as his desk with someone sitting across him, his back to Selphie and the assistant.

"I have brought the girl." The assistant announced.

Headmaster Cid looked away from his guest and saw Selphie, who still looked rather timid and nervous. "Ah Selphie, do have a seat. I was just getting acquainted with a friend of yours." He turned back to his guest, "I'm sorry I never got your name."

"No need to apologize my good man, just call me Devin." The guest turned towards Selphie and smiled kindly. "And it's so good to see you in good health my dear Selphie." He continued cheerfully.

Selphie stood frozen as her lips, barely agape uttered, "Mr. Devin…"

Headmaster Cid gave Selphie an awkward glance noticing how still she'd become after meeting eye contact with Devin. "Are you alright Selphie? You look like you've seen a ghost."

Devin laughed heartily, "Stunned isn't she!" He came to his feet, "You see Headmaster, we've been separated for nearly a year! She probably did think me dead, as I assumed she." He came towards Selphie and hugged her uncomfortably tightly, almost squeezing. "I couldn't imagine what else could've kept her for so long! But now, I've found her and we may return home." He turned around, one arm still around Selphie, still squeezing her slightly.

Cid massaged his temples, "Well Selphie has became very dear to us here at Garden Devin, we've all grown quite attached to her, my wife especially."

Devin released Selphie and came towards the desk again. "My good Headmaster! You've been keeping Selphie here out of charity, she's been a burden to you no doubt. I intend to take her back to Trabia, where she belongs. You've all been so kind to watch over her for me but I don't believe we'll intrude on your generosity any longer." With that, Devin pulled an envelope from his expensive suit's coat and handed to Headmaster Cid. "For all the expenses she must've accumulated."

Opening the envelope carefully, Headmaster Cid readjusted his glasses as he came to see just how much the envelope contained. "Devin, this is far too much, really I can't accept this."

"Please Headmaster, it is my humble gratitude. And the rest is shall we say, a donation to your great institution that's taken many charities like my Selphie aboard."

Trying to keep the thick stack of gil out of mind, Headmaster Cid turned to Devin and mustered a polite smile. "You must understand Devin, I cannot allow this without at least my wife's consent. And Selphie here has said nothing about wanting to leave."

"I'm afraid Headmaster, I'm in a bit of a rush. I cannot wait long. Selphie here can reassure you I'm sure." Devin looked back to Selphie and eyed her carefully. "Selphie my dear," He started, "tell this good Headmaster how much you wish to go to Trabia. Tell him how you long to return with me."

Selphie felt as though she'd lost all the air in her lungs. Barely able to breath she looked at Headmaster Cid and back to Devin, her eyes filled with fear.

"Tell him, my dear." Mr. Devin repeated a slight hint of sternness in his face.

"I-I want to go back with Mr. Devin. Please Headmaster Cid, I want to go. Nothing would make me happier." She said sheepishly, the words left her lips like acid. "Please." She added meekly trying hard not to cry.

"She can barely contain herself how excited she is! Surely you won't keep her, would you my good man?" Devin drummed his fingers against Cid's desk awaiting his manipulated answer.

"Well Selphie, if you want to go with Devin that badly, I suppose it'd be wrong of me to stop you." Cid sighed almost hopelessly.

"She does, doesn't she?" Devin beamed happily as Selphie nodded in confirmation to his words. "Well it's settled then! Selphie go grab all your belongings and we'll leave immediately for Trabia."

Selphie felt another blow in her gut, "Immediately?" She nearly whimpered, "But what ab—"

"Come, come now Selphie we haven't much time! My vessel is scheduled to leave shortly."

Helplessly, Selphie nodded and turned around dragging her feet to the elevator. She overhead Devin continuing his conversation with Headmaster Cid. "Look at her, so overwhelmed to go home she's nearly crying! I can't thank you enough Headmaster, you and your wife have been too good to watch over her and now reuniting us."

Selphie looked miserably back as the doors swung close, just barely able to hear Headmaster Cid reply, "The pleasure is ours Devin."

Once the doors of the elevator opened to the first floor, Selphie raced out and flew down the stairs trying to avoid any familiar faces and hasten to her room. Her legs flailed out before her as she ran at a speed she didn't even know she was capable of. She finally reached her room, empty save for Angelo who paced about bored. Slamming the door behind her, she leaned her back against it and slid down to the floor.

_Why is he here? _Tears filled Selphie's eyes she breathed heavily in realizing what was happening. Mr. Devin was taking her back to Trabia, back to the miserable life she once led. She had no choice in the matter. She blinked letting the small tears inch down her cheek.

Angelo, aware that Selphie sat alone upset came to her offering his face to nuzzle in comfort. Selphie sniffled and patted Angelo gently, not able to stop her tears that came more frequently. Her pounded loudly in her chest, still afraid about the situation. In attempt to calm herself down she hugged Angelo tightly and buried her face into his fur until the crying ceased.

"Tilmitt." Came a voice from directly behind her. Selphie turned around and slowly opened the door to another Garden faculty assistant, or the same. "Y-yes?" She replied hesitantly.

"Mr. Devin is waiting for you at the gates, are you packed yet?"

Selphie came to her feet and rubbed her face dry. "N-no, not yet. Just a few more minutes."

"Mr. Devin stated he was in hurry, I suggest you do the same."

Nodding slowly, Selphie closed the door and turned to her room passed the study table. Her room, unlike most all students in Garden resided barely adorned. Over the time she'd spent in Garden she just never acquired much. She grabbed for box in her closest that Matron had brought full of her old clothes to give to her when she first arrived.

Selphie opened all her drawers and pulled out her uniforms and the very same clothes that filled the box when she first received it: the white summer dress and a few articles she'd grown to love wearing. She also placed in it the yellow overall dress she wore from Trabia. When Selphie first arrived to Balamb she threw off all the leggings and undershirts she needed to shield against Trabian weather into the ocean, never thinking she'd need it again.

Next came any items she owned. There was the chocobo alarm clock Rinoa had given her, her Flail, the old box of Cheeky Chirpy Chocobos, a few pairs of shoes, any school books Matron had given her, school supplies, and the copy of _Legend of Gilgamesh _that she'd never finished.

The few possessions untouched left in the room remained safe in her closest. Selphie looked longingly at the beautiful dress she'd worn the SeeD Inaugural ball. Behind it laid the few accessories to match it, the shoes, glimmering hair clips and earrings. Barely making contact, Selphie traced her finger down the silky material debating whether to pack it.

_Rinoa did buy it for me_… Selphie thought pleadingly to herself. _Mr. Devin goes to fancy places; maybe I'll even get to wear it again! _Without another thought, Selphie carefully unhooked the mercury dress and folded to fit in her box. She scooped the accessories in after it and looked about her room. As unadorned as it appeared before, her room looked completely empty now.

Selphie went to her nightstand and opened the drawer. She scooted some old worksheets, graded papers from her classes, and found the only item she'd brought from Trabia save the clothes she wore on her back. The small silver necklace she'd taken from Devin's household glimmered in the light. Gingerly, she pulled it out and observed it in the daylight.

Back in Trabia, Selphie used to wear this necklace at all times under all her clothing. It used to be the only thing of beauty on her, but after arriving to Garden, she never felt the need to wear it. Of course, she'd grown to love the trinket and couldn't bare to throw it away, thus she kept it hidden away. Selphie carefully opened the necklace's clasp and began to lace the chain around her neck when a thought struck her.

All her wonderful new friends gave the box sitting on her bed, full of possessions she didn't come here with. They'd all given her so much and she had nothing to offer them. Rinoa who had given her small gifts and taken her shopping, Matron who'd gave her flail and all her textbooks, and of course there was Irvine who'd brought her to begin with. Selphie held the necklace in her hand watching the light of the sun reflect off its small shiny surface. _I have to give them something…_

Selphie pulled out an old worksheet and turned it over to its black back. She snatched up a pencil and began writing, holding back her tears with every letter. Forcing her best and neatest handwriting she wrote, "_Thanks for everything. I'll miss you, goodbye forever – Selphie." _She rested the paper on the bed weighing it down with her necklace.

Scooping the heavy box into her arms, Selphie gave one last look at her room. She smiled weakly and walked out of the dorm, Angelo barking goodbye as she did.

The assistant stood outside the door waiting patiently for Selphie. Without a word, he liberated her of her heavy box of possessions. Although Selphie felt grateful for another moment with the parcel in her hands would have caused to collapse, she vocalized nothing as the assistant effortlessly held it in his arms and led Selphie down the hall.

Selphie scouted the halls and all the lingering students for a familiar face. She needed someone, anyone, to recognize her so she could tell him or her why she was leaving. She wanted to find someone who would tell Irvine why she would not be at his room waiting for him. She pleaded for someone to notice that she wasn't willing to go. She desired a messenger to take her true feelings to her friends.

They reached the front doors without any attention towards them. Selphie looked desperately around herself, was there no one? Close to tears she looked to the Garden Faculty assistant, "Please," she started almost trembling, "I need to talk to my friends."

The assistant replied promptly, "Mr. Devin said he was in a hurry, I was told to hastily bring you to him. Nothing else concerns me. If you wish you may leave a note."

"I did leave a note—" Selphie started to explain.

"If you've left a note then the message should be well received."

"B-but I didn't say everything I wanted too! Please I just need a minute with them, any of them."

Selphie couldn't tell what facial expression the assistant wore, but she assumed it may have been aggravated since he groaned and finally said to her, "You may send one brief message, say it now and I'll send it along."

Slightly speechless, Selphie's thoughts madly streamed through her mind. _Brief? That's short, right? A short message? How can I explain everything I need to explain in a short message? Will he even get it right? Okay, think Selphie, something simple that tells him everything in a short sentence… oh who am I kidding? There's no such thing! Oh Irvy, I'm so sorry. _

"Well?" The assistant pried the irritation in his normally emotionless voice growing.

Selphie weakly smiled and said, "Tell him, I'm sorry, but, I had to go— b-but I'll never forget him."

"And to whom is this message going to?"

"Irvy—" Selphie bit her lip, "Irvy-n, Irvine. Irvine Kinneas."

The assistant nodded as he turned towards the courtyard. Without another words spoken between them, they crossed the empty gardens to the tall gate at the front. Devin stood outside his car waiting with his plastered smile. The assistant rested the box in the backseat of the car and left without comment.

Devin politely opened the door for Selphie, "Well my dear, shall we go?"

Selphie looked back once more at the wonderful blue building with its grand halo and outlining gardens. Inaudibly she released a mournful sigh, blinked back any tears and nodded. Slowly she sat herself in the car, her vision glued to the home she'd grown to love more than anywhere. Devin started the car and started out of the perimeter into the long winding road. Selphie watched in silence, as Garden slowly became smaller and smaller, fading into the distance.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''

While Irvine sat back behind his study panel, relaxed and laid back, he noticed Rinoa anxiously tapping her fingers on the edge of the panel. Although he was content just daydreaming about the day ahead, he decided to open Garden BBS and see what was troubling her.

**Kinneas GSE :  
****What's eating you? It's not like you to not pay attention in class.**

Rinoa looked at the blinking screen that appeared on her study panel. She looked at Irvine with irritated eyes and sighed as she turned to read the message. Before replying, she looked away somewhat concerned or just more anxious. Finally, she typed back a short message.

**Rinoa C :  
****Instructor Trepe and Seifer**

**Kinneas GSE :  
****You're just going to embarrass yourself Rin!**

**Rinoa C :  
****Irvine, it'd explain everything! Why Seifer stopped caring that I spent time with Squall, why I barely ever saw him, do you think this goes back to the time he was injured and the only one he let in his room was Instructor Trepe? He wouldn't let me near him!**

**Kinneas GSE :  
****Seriously, you're totally paranoid. I don't remember Seifer ever being all the cool with you and Squall. He always had a stick up his ass about it. But Seifer isn't even your boyfriend anymore; did you forget you have a new one of those? Or you bored of him now too?**

**Rinoa C :  
****I have to know Irvine! Maybe it'll explain why he cheated on me, I mean we haven't really talked since everything happened. I have a right to know, a right to talk about it at least. It's been awhile, we've both cooled down. I think it's safe to finally have 'that conversation'. You said it yourself I have to find out the truth.**

**Kinneas GSE :  
****I don't think it's ever safe to ask your ex boyfriend if he's sleeping with his teacher, but alright power to you. But promise me, whatever happens, do not, and I mean it Rin, DON'T COME TO MY ROOM AND BUG ME ABOUT IT. I got special plans. You got something to say, save it for tomorrow afternoon. **

**Rinoa C :  
****I never said they were sleeping together, ugh Irvine you make things always so vulgar. Anyways fine, I won't bug you. Big plans with Selphie I take it? What, you finally going to get laid?**

**Kinneas GSE :  
****Hey! You should be happy for me if I do! It's been forever! But it's not set in stone, we'll see where the night takes us ;) **

**Rinoa C :  
****Irvine, you'll never have my pity in that department : P**

Irvine chuckled as he looked to Rinoa who also seemed to have loosened up. They smiled at each other as Rinoa rested her head on Irvine's shoulder. Instructor Akii continued to lecture history, but the two of them could only think of their very near futures.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

"I'm gone for one afternoon and you do this?"

Edea normally kept herself calm and collected, she never let her emotions run away with her, being a sorceress after all it wasn't a wise action. However, when she returned to Garden and asked her husband, 'What happened while I was gone?' she certainly didn't expect what she heard.

"Edea please, let's be calm about this." Cid said complaisantly attempting to calm down his severely angered wife.

Headmistress Edea tossed her head letting her long silky black her flail behind her, "I will not be calm Cid! How could you do such a thing?" She stamped her white hands against Cid's desk and looked at him furiously in the eye.

"I told you, I did nothing that you yourself wouldn't have done."

Edea drummed her fingers against the desk. Her husband had told her the exact scene, play by play. He, however, forgot to mention the tiny detail of Devin's donation. When Edea saw the fat envelope in the drawer, and Cid's reluctance to tell her where it came from, her anger revived in twice the amount. "I wouldn't have been bought off Cid!"

Cid came to his feet and patted his wife's shoulders leading her to a chair. He gestured her to sit down and held her soft graceful hands in his. "Darling, I hate to say this so crudely, but he was right. I do have a Garden to run, and not every student brings tuition." Edea eyed him judgingly. "I love how your heart is so warm and caring that you allow and keep so many orphaned students, and even how you took Selphie in, but we must face the facts. If someone was giving us money, in an act of gratitude, I couldn't do too much to refuse!"

Although the entire situation sounded fishy to Edea, she couldn't deny Cid's logical reasoning. She sighed, her temper cooling down.

"Selphie insisted nothing would make her happier, I know you were fond of her dearest but you wouldn't force her to stay either. I know you'll miss her, believe me, even I'll miss her."

Edea came to her feet gently and nodded to show she'd completely returned to her tranquil composure. "I know you wouldn't do something completely without reason, I just wish you at least took the man's full name." Although her voice remained soothing and serene, Cid knew she still felt irritated and bitter.

Quietly sighing again, Edea slipped her hands out of her husband's enfold, and walked towards the door.

"Edea?" Cid called cautiously after her.

Edea stopped short and responded her back still turned to Headmaster Cid. "I have a few other people I ought to inform," she added quietly under voice, "who most likely will miss her even more."

''''''''''''''''''''''''''

After lecture ended, the class took longer than it normally did to clear out. Squall, as predicted, was of the first to gather his things and leave. Other little groups of classmates dawdled and loitered about, chatting about the class and other topics. Quistis watched as the room slowly emptied leaving behind Seifer, and trio of Trepies.

Seifer began to approach the desk, taking his time waiting for the Trepies to have their moment with his Instructor. He groaned as he noticed the three coming towards him instead.

The trio surrounded him questionably. While Baku turned away, somewhat angry looking, the two girls of the group eyed him deeply. "You know Seifer, you should join our club." One of them said with a smile.

"Yeah, I mean we already know that you are Trepie secretly, you're always with her. Oh, you're sooo lucky. I wish I had all that time with Instructor Trepe, she's truly inspirational." The other said her fists clenched in jealousy.

"I know Baku is jealous of you too, but he'll never say it." The first one piped in with a laugh.

"I'm not jealous, why should I be jealous of Instructor Trepe's problem student? Hah! One of these days, Instructor Trepe will realize just how perfect we are for each and then—" Baku looked away dreamily, "we'll be together forever!"

"Get a grip on yourself Baku." Lena, the first girl snapped irritably.

"Would you three just get lost?" Seifer finally snapped, his patience completely run dry.

"Temper, temper Seifer! You better not be like that to Instructor Trepe. We just came by to tell you she needs to talk to you." Narissa said turning her head snootily, "Personally I don't see why she'd waste a minute on you."

"2,3, let's go." Baku said leading the way out of class. Narissa and Lena threw one last dark glare Seifer's way and followed their loyal leader out of the classroom.

Seifer smiled wistfully at their exit, he turned his attention to Quistis, who sat against her desk grinning at him. "I thought they'd never leave!" He exclaimed relieved. He swooped towards Quistis and leaned in for a kiss, only to feel Quistis' thin fingers pressed against his chest as weak means to stop him. He raised his eyebrow at her waiting for her to explain.

"I just don't think it's a wise idea to rendezvous in the classroom anymore, seeing as what happened not all that long ago…" Quistis said quietly.

"What is Selphie on her way or something? Even if she is, who cares? She already knows." With that, Seifer leaned again, this time close enough to touch Quistis' lips.

She pulled away again and shook her head. "She's not coming today but I still think it's a bad idea."

Seifer quickly reached forward, grabbed Quistis' arm, and yanked her towards him. She landed swiftly against his chest as he placed a kiss on her lips. Not resisting to his affection, Quistis rested her hands gently on Seifer's shoulders and indulged in the kiss for a moment before parting. Seifer gave her a sly look, "Don't you see how much better things are when you listen to me?"

The electronic humming of the door sounded. Quistis leapt from Seifer's grasp before the door could even finish hissing open. She pushed a lock of hair behind her ear nervously as she watched the visitor enter the room. "Headmistress Edea!" She cried out in a mix of emotions.

Edea looked at Quistis then to Seifer. "I hope I'm not interrupting you Quistis."

Quistis bowed her head politely, although her face still flushed and nervous, "O-of course not Headmistress!"

Seifer respectfully bowed at the waist towards Edea. "Headmistress Edea, it's always an honor to see you." He smiled, genuinely with not even a hint of mischief in his eyes. Edea returned the expression nodding her head to him.

"Oh Seifer, I've heard such wonderful things about you from Instructor Trepe, you're doing us quite proud." She said happily.

"Hearing you say it makes it so much more worth the effort."

Although Quistis understood Seifer was dearly enjoying his tête-à-tête with Headmistress Edea, being she would most likely be the only Sorceress he ever had the pleasure of knowing, her nervousness from almost being caught had flattened her decorum. "Is there something I can help you with Headmistress?"

Seifer looked at her bitterly as Edea swept passed him and stepped forwards Quistis. "Ah yes, I just wanted to tell you, that you'll no longer have to tutor Selphie."

"Have you found a different instructor for her?" Quistis asked inquisitively.

"Not quite— it seems Selphie has left for Trabia. I believe for good."

"She's gone?" Seifer blurted in a somewhat joyful shocked tone.

Edea looked at him oddly and finally nodded. "Yes, she left just earlier." She turned back to Quistis and grinned kindly, "I do thank you for all the time you gave Selphie. I know she dearly loved your lectures. It's a shame you two never finally got to the field."

Quistis pushed another lock of hair behind her ear and nodded. "You're very welcome Headmistress. I wouldn't worry about Selphie though, she told me her and Irvine Kinneas would practice quite often in the field. She'll be missed of course."

"Of course…" Edea sighed as she looked towards the door, "Irvine." She glanced back at Quistis and Seifer, "Thank you for your time, have good a day."

"And you have a wonderful day Headmistress." Seifer called out, his smile still upon his face.

Quistis eyed him as Edea left the room. She shook her head and laughed, putting the back of her hand to her lips. "Oh Seifer, you're like a child. You're absolutely beaming right now."

Seifer squinted his eyes, "I don't usually get to talk to her."

Still laughing Quistis came and patted Seifer's shoulder, "Oh I know. Don't worry, I'm not telling anyone that you're like a kid in a candy store around Headmistress Edea."

"You know **some** people call her Sorceress Edea."

After Quistis subsided her laughter, she sat against her desk and sighed. "That was awfully close though Seifer. If you don't recall, this was exactly what I was warning you about." She sighed loudly thinking aloud, "How bizarre is that the Selphie has suddenly left?"

Seifer shrugged coolly and strummed his finger along the side of Quistis' cheek ending at her chin. "What's there to worry about? The only one who knew about us is in Trabia. We've got nothing to stress about." He leaned in for another kiss, not surprised when Quistis pushed him away and pointed to the door. Glaring at her irritably, Seifer took a hint and let himself out.

Outside in the hall, only a few feet from the door to Quistis' classroom stood Rinoa. "Rinoa?" Seifer asked blatantly. Hearing her name, Rinoa blinked and looked at Seifer attentively. "Wha- when did you get here?"

"Just now." She responded, somewhat timidly. "I-I need to talk to you."

Seifer raised an eyebrow and turned to leave. "Alright what is it?"

Rinoa looked around the empty hallway cautiously, "Maybe we should go somewhere private."

"Yeah, just look at all our spectators. Anyways if you're here to try and kill me I'd rather the chance of a witness being around." Seifer chuckled still walking away.

Rinoa clenched her fingers around her necklace and squeezed her eyes shut, "Fine there's no easy way to ask this—Seifer are you dating Instructor Trepe?"

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Normally Irvine wanted to accompany Rinoa on something as interesting as an ex-boyfriend confrontation. He found the drama entertaining, and Rinoa always leaning on him for support and comfort always boosted his ego. Especially when Rinoa sprinkled a few 'Oh when will find a guy as great as you?' Generally, Rinoa only said words, as she called 'this outlandish', when she was incredibly upset.

However, today he knew Selphie was waiting for him. They'd have the whole day, and the whole night together. Irvine had an idea what may happen as the day progressed, but regardless of what actually would take place, Irvine would be satisfied just to be with Selphie.

He entered his dorm proudly and looked around. The room appeared empty, perhaps Selphie was hiding? Irvine looked behind the door and scanned under the bed; no Selphie anywhere. Irvine gave the room a careful glance. Not only was the room empty, but also it appeared to not have changed even the slightest since he left it a night or two ago. The sheet still ruffled the exact same way, a pile of bullet shells huddled in a small clutter on the nightstand, even a pillow he dropped still laid on the floor.

Clearly, Selphie hadn't come here, else something would have moved from its place. Irvine sighed, perhaps she'd lost track of time and still was at her room. He turned around and hurried to Rinoa's and Selphie's dorm. As usual, the door was unlocked. He let himself in, patted Angelo who greeted him excitedly at the door, and rushed into Selphie's room.

Irvine stood stunned in the doorway of the room. The entire room stood completely void of possessions. Confused, Irvine stepped in and scanned around. The closest door hung open revealing its lack of contents inside. A drawer in the nightstand with a collection of crumpled worksheets was the sole sign remaining of human habitation.

"This is strange…" The cowboy thought to himself. He turned around and took a seat at the study table. Selphie didn't mention having to switch rooms. Perhaps it was a sudden decision?

A knock sounded at the door as Irvine jerked his head up hopefully and rushed to answer it. Behind the door stood Headmistress Edea, upon seeing her Irvine almost instantly deflated, noticeably.

"Oh, hello there Irvine. Is Rinoa here?" She asked ignoring his dismay.

"No ma'am, she said she'd be looking for Seifer after class." Irvine said his voice downtrodden.

"I see, well then I'll just returned to Instructor Trepe's class and wait for her. If you see her let her know I'm looking for her." Edea immediately turned around and began to glide away.

"Wait, Matron!" Irvine called after her. Edea stopped politely but he face gave the impression she dearly did not want to linger. "Matron," the cowboy started slowly, "have you seen Selphie? Did you two end up having class? Or uh, did you assign her a new dorm or something?"

Edea's face fell as she shook her head softly. "Irvine, I really wish to speak with Rino—"

"Is Selphie okay?" Irvine's voice grew anxious.

With a soft sigh, Edea swiftly came back to the dorm and sat herself at the study table. She sat elegantly straight, her snow-white hands folded in her lap. "Selphie is fine Irvine, I wanted to speak with Rinoa first, but I see you're not going to give me that chance." Cautiously, Irvine closed the door and sat himself across the table from Edea.

Edea met his gaze, her eyes soft and somewhat sad. "I'm afraid— well it appears that Selphie has left for Trabia." Irvine's face instantly responded to Edea's words. Remaining calm, she finished her statement with, "I don't believe she intends to return."

Irvine blinked, hard. He opened his mouth to speak but words failed him. Finally, he coughed out, "She's gone? Just like that? H-how did this happen?"

"Well, while I myself was gone, a gentleman who claimed to know Selphie arrived here. Selphie attested to knowing him, and he insisted she return to Trabia with him. She apparently agreed full-heartedly. Cid told me the man was in a hurry and therefore he could not wait for us to hear about it and say good-bye. He must've had a ship to catch."

Stunned, despaired, and incredibly angry, Irvine stormed to his feet. "Headmaster Cid just let her go with a complete stranger?" He turned around, rushed through the dorm's exit, and ran through the halls to the main elevator. He faintly heard Edea calling out behind him. He paid no mind to it and hastened to Headmaster Cid's office. He swept passed Xu, who usually stood as a secretary to the Headmaster, also ignoring her defiant calls.

"Headmaster Cid!" Irvine shouted after bursting passed the gold and maroon double doors. It came as a shock to Irvine when he saw Headmistress Edea already there, sitting on the edge of the desk, her arms crossed as if she'd been waiting for him. "Headmistress— how did you—"

"Some people know me as a Sorceress Irvine." Edea stated cutting Irvine off. She slid off the desk and came to her feet. "Now then, I understand you're upset, but I will not have you disrespect the authorities of this Garden."

Irvine turned his attention to Headmaster Cid, who sat behind his large desk. He nodded in agreement to this wife's words. "Irvine I know you and Selphie were a great deal close, but as I told Edea here, she left in good hands, and happily."

"Who took her?" Irvine snapped in blatant distrust.

"A wealthy gentleman, Devin I believe was his name." Cid answered confidently.

"_Mr. Devin— oh I'm so stupid!" She bent her knees in and pulled against her hair. "Oh gosh, what am I going to do!" _

_ "What about Mr. Devin?" Irvine asked curiously watching Selphie prancing about in self-punishment. "Shouldn't he be like, happy for you?"_

_ Selphie stopped and stared at her dead hearth. "I don't know." She said quietly. Soundly she stepped to the small platform on which stood her fireplace. She stroked the pile of ash and sighed. "I really haven't ever done anything without, well telling him. Asking for his permission… it's just weird that I did this without letting him know anything."_

_ "If he's smart he'll be happy? What is he your father?"_

_ "No, no!" Selphie spun to Irvine and shook her head. "Not at all, it's just he's been so kind to me. He's done so much for me!" Her eyes burned with meaning, "You don't understand he only wants what's best for me I know it!" _

_"Mr. Devin was like that too." She said muffled into his shoulder. "He always took good care of me. One day though… I made him mad. I don't really know what I did, but I got so scared that I ran away with you. I'm still so scared of him, and I get so worried thinking if I make you mad, you'll treat me the same way."_

"…_So, I started joining them, and one day… I just stopped coming back. It's okay though, because I met Mr. Devin."_

_ There's that name again… Mr. Devin. Irvine thought to himself._

_"I don't think Mr. Devin wants to ever see me again though… he's real mad at me. Cause' I left Trabia I suppose." Selphie continued softly and sadly._

Irvine felt his insides burn, how could Headmaster Cid just let her walk away. How could Selphie just walk away? "You made a mistake Headmaster! A **big** mistake!" He left without another word and rushed away.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Seifer stopped in his tracks, turned around, his mouth agape, and entirely stunned. "What did you just say to me?"

Rinoa pinched a lock of hair nervously and stepped forward. "I asked if you were dating Instructor Trepe."

It took a moment before Seifer guffawed and pushed Rinoa aside. "Wow Rinoa, that is the craziest thing I've ever heard you say." He continued to laugh and turned around ready to leave again. "Can you imagine if I were?"

"Yeah, I can. That's why I'm asking. Seifer I'm being serious here, I know there's something going on." Rinoa placed her hands on her hips. "We've been avoiding this conversation for weeks. If you don't have the decency to tell me why you cheated on me then— then I guess there's nothing to say!" With a huff of anger, Rinoa began to march off.

"You're one to talk Rinoa! Look at you, prancing about with your new boyfriend, my nemesis! You think you're any better than me?" Seifer snapped.

"Oh so we're playing who can sting the other the most then?" Rinoa cried angrily.

_"What do you think you could even understand about it? You, a person who doesn't even respect relationships." _As Quistis' past words echoed in his mind,Seifer acknowledged that day he'd truly wronged Rinoa, and as much as he may regret the decision he made, Rinoa did deserve some explanation. He reached his arm out grabbing Rinoa's, halting her from continuing. Rinoa looked back at him with scornful eyes. "You're right. About everything." He said softly.

Rinoa stood still, even as Seifer let go of her arm. It'd been weeks, had it almost been a month now since she decided she wanted to have this conversation? Now that it was upon her, she felt afraid to hear it. Would Seifer say everything she feared?

Seifer quietly gestured towards an empty classroom. The two walked in wordlessly and faced each other. Rinoa waited patiently to start talking. "Rinoa," he started rather unsure, "I'm sorry about everything, and I guess I'm even sorry we've had to wait this long to talk it out."

Still uneasy, Rinoa took sat herself against the instructor's desk.

"Rinoa, I didn't mean to cheat on you— eh maybe I did. I don't know what I wanted, but I didn't want to be with that girl, whatever her name is."

"Scarlet." Rinoa answered bitterly.

"Her." Seifer bobbed his head. "I know I was wrong. I uh, didn't even like her." He leaned crossed his arms realizing how everything he said only steadily made him seem worse. Saying the truth still bothered him, with Selphie gone he didn't think anyone knew, but if Rinoa was still around, she could rat him out. Facing the situation, Seifer turned around and took a deep breath. "Rinoa, I've liked Quis— I mean—"

"Instructor Trepe," She breathed shocked, "you two are really together?"

"Rinoa, if anyone finds out, Quistis, ugh I mean Instructor Trepe will lose her job."

Rinoa stayed quiet for a moment taking it all in. As she suspected, while she slowly fell for Squall, Seifer fell for Instructor Trepe. "I just don't get where Scarlet came into the mix."

Seifer groaned, reluctant to explain this part of the story, which seemingly was the most important part to Rinoa as it she was the coup de grace of her relationship. "The night of the ball, Quistis told me to beat it, and you told me to leave you alone—and Scarlet showed up in the hall and offered something to drink. One thing led to another, and then I screwed up. I hurt you and Quistis."

"Seifer," Rinoa started meekly. Seifer met her gaze as she continued. "If you knew you had feelings for someone, even if it was someone like your instructor who normally you couldn't be with, why didn't you just break up with me?"

"Why didn't you break up with me Rinoa?" Rinoa opened her mouth to reply, but Seifer took the reigns again and spoke before she had a moment to answer. "There was always something big going on, exams, tests, the ball— I mean how was I supposed to break up with you, when I didn't even have a reason too? We've been together for so long."

Seifer let out a loud exhale, there was nothing more to be said of the past. "Rinoa, I know you might still be mad and want to get back at me. Please don't let Instructor Trepe be collateral damage. If you want to report us, just tell me now, we'll stop seeing each other."

"I'm not out to get you Seifer, honestly." Rinoa smiled and patted Seifer's shoulder, "I just had to know what happened—to us. I had to know whose fault it was, if there was anything we could've done to stop it." Seifer looked at her uneasily. "I know things did just end up in a disaster, but it was really both of our faults. Neither of us had the guts to say how we felt. More importantly, neither of us cared to."

Seifer felt for Rinoa's hand and gave it a pull, bringing her to her feet. "I know you might just be dating Squall to spite me, but I hope you're happier now. For the record, our time together, was great. I wouldn't have changed a thing— except the whole Scarlet thing of course." He hugged gently and Rinoa returned the embracing, holding on to not only Seifer, but also the closure she finally needed to hear.

"Just so you know, I'm not dating him to spite you, I never was." They met eyes and smiled at each other. " And I wouldn't have a changed a thing either Seifer." They ended their hug and walked towards the door. "So did you really kiss Selphie?"

"Who the hell told you that?"

"Irvine."

"Sniper slut blabbermouth."

Rinoa laughed as the two exited the room.

'''''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine sat at the study table in Rinoa's dorm. He looked off drearily into space. He'd just returned from the Balamb harbor where he asked if any boats left for Trabia. As Edea and Cid mentioned, only one did. As for him, no passenger boats would leave for Trabia in the near future, and even if they were, Irvine couldn't afford a train or boat ticket of his own. Even when he brought Selphie to Balamb, he rather smuggled her aboard.

Whether or not he had the means necessary to go to Trabia, he knew well there was no point in going. He couldn't just up and leave Garden. He groaned miserably, Selphie was gone, she'd left Garden and that was the end of it. He would never see her again. His fist clenched as it resisted against the table.

Just then, Rinoa returned to the dorm cheery with a smile on her face. "Hey Irvine, what're you doing here?" She laughed, "Shouldn't you be with Selphie? I thought you had big plans."

Irvine turned his head away and answered in a low voice, "It got canceled."

"Aw, oh well." Rinoa merrily trotted over to him and kneeled over patting his shoulder, "Don't be so glum! There's always the weekend, Selphie's weekend classes are pretty short." She stood up straight not taking much notice to just how upset Irvine looked. She sat on her knees and clapped her hands letting Angelo leap onto her lap and shower her with affection. "Where is Selphie by the way?" She asked leaning her head back from Angelo licking her face.

"Trabia." Irvine said in the same tone, flatly.

Rinoa blinked a few times and came to her feet. "What do you mean?" Irvine didn't reply, but simply gave a shrug of his shoulders and gestured his head towards Selphie's room. Eying Irvine carefully, Rinoa nodded and let herself into the now empty bedroom.

"What happened?" She called out loudly, still not getting any response from Irvine.

Still hanging his head miserably, Irvine sighed loudly and listened while Rinoa exclaim at different sights of emptiness in the room. The only thing that piqued his interest was the sound of crumpling paper and Rinoa's comment of, "What's this?"

Rinoa stepped out of the room with a sheet of paper in one hand, and cupping something in the other. She handed the wrinkled worksheet to Irvine to read aloud. Irvine took it hesitantly and look carefully at the light chicken scratch writing. "Thanks for everything," he read slowly making out the messy letters, "I'll miss you. Goodbye forever, Selphie." Irvine stared at the paper deeply as though waiting for a new message to appear. After a moment, he let the paper slip through his fingers and swing through the air landing on the floor.

"She left this with it." Rinoa said quietly. Immediately, Irvine turned to Rinoa and saw a glittering silver necklace dangling from her fingers. "It's really pretty, I wonder where she got it from. Did you buy this for her?"

Carefully, Irvine reached out, touched the delicate chain, and clasped the pendent in his palm. "No, I didn't." He thought to himself if Selphie had even one memento of him at all.

While Irvine stared deeply and longingly at the necklace, Rinoa tilted her head and softly said, "Why don't you keep that Irvine?" He didn't reply to her, so she sat herself down at the study table. "So what happened?"

Irvine squeezed his fingers closed around the necklace, "I came back from class and I couldn't find her. Matron told me she'd left. From the note, I guess she really did want to leave."

"How does that note prove anything? It barely says a word."

"It says 'Thank you', no 'I'm sorry', no 'I wish I could stay', she said what she wanted— that she's glad to be gone." Irvine squeezed his fist tighter and came to his feet. His fist began shake, turning a bright red. "If she wants to go," Irvine kicked the paper that had fallen on the floor, "then we don't need her here." He finished his words coldly and stormed out of the dorm.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Selphie sat in a corner of the vessel's parlor. The room was empty, save for a cabin maid who dusted the light spread of furniture. She'd spoken hardly a word since Devin and her left Balamb. They came to the harbor and Selphie nearly had to be dragged by Devin to enter the ship. Several men, dressed similar to Devin boarded the ship as well, none lingered in the front parlor as she did.

Devin didn't try to make her speak, he simply let her wallow in the corner, clutching the box of possessions in her lap. Selphie hadn't once gazed out a window made so much of a movement since she sat herself down. Her eyes looked lost, dazed in a trance as she looked over her collection of items from Balamb Garden.

"Still here are you?" Devin's voice sounded. Selphie didn't look up, she remained in a dreamlike state as Devin sat himself beside her. "Now then, stop looking so sad, you're on a top of the line luxury vessel. Why don't you go enjoy yourself down below? There's much to do in here."

Still silent, Selphie looked up to Devin. She gulped soundlessly and continued to look at him, focused and attentive but mute.

"Now Selphie, my dear," Devin said patting her cheek, "I don't like seeing you so unhappy. We're going home, and it'll better than before. You'll see." He continued to pat her cheek, on occasion patting hard enough to feel like a slap. "Now if you continue to sit here and mope, I will be cross. I even had some warmer Trabia friendly clothes brought for you, so go below to your room and wait there. I won't have you sitting here so lifelessly."

Nothing that Mr. Devin said comforted her, however, she didn't feel too casual about his threat of becoming cross. She nodded slowly and came to her feet, as she did, her arms struggled to hold her box.

"I'll just take that, my dear." Mr. Devin said easily relieving Selphie of the box. He took a glance inside and cautiously raised an item or two to get a better look. "These things are absolutely useless to you now. Look at these clothes," He pulled out the beautiful white sundress.

Selphie's mind immediately replayed the times she'd worn it. She first wore it the day Rinoa and her went shopping for a ball gown. She wore it again for her and Irvine's first date— their only date.

"The weather is just never warm enough for any of these," Devin simply sifted through the clothing and tossed out nearly every article. "And this," He pulled out the game of Cheeky Chirpy Chocobos, "is a child's game." With that, he tossed it onto the floor. He didn't even mention the textbooks, rather he simply tossed them on the ground as well, carelessly as if they had no need to even be spoken of. Devin pulled out Selphie's Flail to which she cried.

"Oh no, please, not that!"

Mr. Devin stared at her darkly, "You'll have no need for it anymore, my dear." He said calmly dropping it to the floor, causing a loud clamor as it knocked against itself. Lastly, he pulled out _The Legend of Gilgamesh_. "Ah a classic, a good book. I suppose you can keep this." He handed the book to Selphie and dropped the nearly empty box on the floor atop of the pile of contents. "Maid!" He called out catching the attention of the cabin maid, "Throw all these things out, they're all trash." The maid nodded as she began to scoop the items back into the box.

Selphie watched in despair, her eyes welling up. "Now then, my dear." Mr. Devin said kindly, roughly grabbing Selphie's arm. "I'll personally show you to your cabin, you look exhausted. I believe you could use some rest."

Despite Mr. Devin's tight grip leading her away, Selphie watched behind her desperately as the maid disappeared with her box of treasures from Garden. Her clock, her books, the gown from the ball, she'd never see any of the items again, nor would she see Matron, Rinoa, Zell, Nida, Amy, Seifer, or even Squall again. A silent tear slid down Selphie's cheek, _I'll never see Irvy again…_

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Rinoa scouted the halls before class. Students passed her by without notice to her strained and concerned face. The crowds began to thin as Rinoa hopelessly concluded that Irvine would not come to class. The news didn't surprise her, oddly enough. She exhaled loudly as a familiar face appeared before her.

"Good morning Squall." She greeted with a weak smile.

Squall coolly gave a small curve of a grin, barely noticeable to the untrained eye. He looked around behind him, as he had noticed Rinoa's lack of attention towards him. "What're you doing?"

"Oh I was just looking for Irvine. I hoped he was coming to class today, but I guess he's too down in the dumps."

"Why?"

"Do you remember his girlfriend, Selphie?"

Squall crossed his arms for a moment and looked to the side thinking to himself. He unfolded his arms and returned his view to Rinoa and held out his hand while speaking, "The hyper girl? She's kind of hard to forget."

A smile touched Rinoa's lips as she nodded in agreement. "Yeah, she does leave an impression on you I guess." She sighed loudly while placing her hands on her hips, "Well she just sort of left Balamb yesterday, most likely forever."

"Why would she do that?" Squall asked after a moment's pause to ponder.

"Well we're not positive, but an old friend of hers came to take her back home, and she said she wanted to go back with him. So she did."

Squall kept quiet for a minute as the crowds of students thinned out behind him. He crossed his arms, uncrossed them and shook his head. Rinoa looked at him curiously watching his silent inner monologue hoping some words would come out of it. Finally, Squall met eyes with Rinoa again.

Clasping her hands behind her back, Rinoa leaned forward with a wry grin. "So what were you thinking about?"

"It's not important, you should go see Irvine."

"What about class?"

"What's one class to **you**?"

"You've got a point." Rinoa nodded in affirmation. "I guess I'll see you later Squall." With that, she walked away down the hall before an Instructor saw her go.

Rinoa made her way hastily turning the corridors to Irvine's dorm. She seldom went to his room as Irvine usually spent time with Selphie at their dorm, nonetheless she remembered well how to get there. Once she arrived, she hesitated whether to let herself in or knock. If she knocked and he ignored, it'd infuriate her, if she barged in he might be in there with a girl which was always awkward. Taking a leap, Rinoa turned the knob, which was unlocked, and let herself in.

The room luckily only had Irvine inside who laid his bed, barely dressed, and appeared barely conscious. He stared at the ceiling, his eyes laid back with a glazed look. Rinoa carefully watched Irvine, who didn't even notice her coming in. Biting her lip, she shut the door behind her loudly snapping Irvine out of his trance.

Irvine blinked and sat up straight in an instant. He looked at Rinoa and sighed, "Oh it's only you."

"Were you expecting someone else?" Rinoa responded crossly.

"Not really." Irvine replied laying himself back down. He yawned loudly and miserably. "So why are you here? Shouldn't you be in class or something?"

_That's what I thought. _"I thought I should come check on you first. I was hoping you'd come to class, but I guess that was silly of me. You don't show up for class when you're in a good mood." She added with a small laugh.

"You're really going to make fun of me right now?"

"Oh come on Irvine, you're not really going to sit here and mope are you?"

"It hasn't even been a full day, Rin. I think I get a 24 hour grace to be upset."

"You know what I mean Irvine. I mean, you're going to get over this."

Irvine sat back up and ran his fingers through his hair; he concentrated for a moment before speaking. "It's just that Rin, I don't **want **to get over it. I mean I never felt for a girl what I felt for Selphie. I'm crazy about her, and if I'm this miserable, okay then. I don't want to get over her, I want **her**."

"But Irv—" Rinoa began to protest.

"Rinoa, just gimme a couple days. I just want to be alone." Irvine turned and rested on his side, his back to Rinoa.

"Irvine I just don't want to see you like this." Rinoa said meekly. Irvine said nothing in response and remained motionless. With a loud hopeless exhale, Rinoa let herself out of the dorm.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Following the three-day boat ride to Trabia, Devin had one of his expensive cars meet him and Selphie at the dock.

Selphie clutched the small bag that contained a few sets of Trabian friendly clothes, and bundled deep within it was her uniform she wore leaving Balamb. She wore a thick yellow sweater with warm black pants currently; trying to adjust to the frigid cold weather, she'd lost her resistance to.

Devin didn't speak much to Selphie after they took off in the ship, and now that they'd gotten off, he simply led her to his car. Inside sat Devin's chauffeur and another man dressed formally, but not nearly as expensive or flashy as Devin. "Sir," They both greeted upon seeing him. The man who was not driving opened the back door for Selphie and Devin, taking their luggage as he did.

After Mr. Devin comfortably sat himself in the warm, relaxing interior of the car, he motioned the driver to go. "Driver, go to that cabin I showed you the other time." He ordered. The driver nodded in response and began to move the car.

The little to no conversation Selphie and Devin had began to feel unsettling. While Devin threatened he'd be cross, Selphie didn't feel confident that he was entirely happy with her. His lack of explanation about everything only made her feel even uneasier. Had Devin fully forgiven her for going to Balamb? Was he still angry with her?

"Mr. Devin—" Selphie started weakly.

"Not now Selphie, we'll talk later." He said quickly hushing her.

Selphie nervously twiddled her fingers in her lap as she gazed out the window. The white plains of Trabia felt like a scene from a bad dream, foreign, yet familiar. She didn't feel welcomed by the surroundings of home, the more fields of white she saw the more her heart yearned for the green seas of the Balamb plains.

They drove for a while, passing by the town, homes, ranches, factories. They drove until there was little or nothing at all to see. Just white emptiness surrounded them. The roads were faintly visible, and signs to explain their location were sparse.

The car finally came to a stop to small cabin. It had no neighbors and only a small gate to indicate the property line. Devin let himself and Selphie out, motioning to his workers to stay in the car. He held Selphie's luggage for her and led her to the cabin.

Devin opened the door to the cabin after crossing the empty lawn. Selphie cautiously followed. Flipping the lights on Devin walked to the middle of the room and smiled. "Welcome home Selphie."

Selphie blinked and looked around. The cabin was fashioned with warm painted walls. A large brick fireplace was placed in the middle of the cabin against the wall, away from the door. The only pieces of furniture were a small table with two chairs near the entrance, a small chest of drawers, and a medium sized bed placed by one of the very few windows. There were two other doors, one leading to a bathroom/laundry room, and the other a very small kitchen.

Marveling at the cabin, Selphie pondered at why Devin brought her here. Had he given up his grand manor to live here? "Is this your home Mr. Devin?" She asked returning to her normal tone of voice.

"Why of course not, this is your new home." Devin replied putting Selphie's bag near the unlit fireplace. "What do you think?"

"It's wonderful." Selphie breathed. She blinked a few times and thought for a moment. "Mr. Devin does this mean you're not mad at me anymore?"

Devin smiled and sat himself on the bed. "I've decided to put your little escapade behind me for now." He patted beside him gesturing for Selphie to sit beside him. With a little hesitance, Selphie did so. "I've begun to understand why you left Trabia to begin with."

"You have?" Selphie responded brightly.

"Yes, I understand your life here in Trabia was difficult. You had to work at that terrible fountain to maintain your lifestyle, standing there all day in the cold. Then you lived in a Hyne forsaken shack with no amenities. I can see your life in Balamb was much easier."

Selphie thought for a moment. She knew that wasn't the reason she left Trabia, but she dared not argue with Mr. Devin.

"So I had this place prepared for you. You'll have everything you need here."

"I don't have to go back to the fountain?"

"Never again my dear, in fact, you won't ever have to leave this place for anything. I've hired a grocer to bring your food, and everything else you may need is already here. You'll be safe and taken care of."

Selphie looked around at the plain four walls. As Devin explained, she couldn't possibly think of a need that wasn't met. "I'll never have to leave?" She repeated slowly, beginning to realize what a sad existence she'd have.

"Never again my dear." Devin came to his feet, pulled out a sheet of paper from his coat, and walked to the door. "Now then, I have to go see my lawyer. I shall be seeing you soon." As he came close to the door, he turned around and added in a serious, cold tone, "I don't know if this needs to be said, but as you have no need to leave this place, I expect you won't."

Although Selphie wasn't the sharpest sword in the junk shop, she knew well what Devin meant. In not as literal of words he stated '**DON'T EVER LEAVE THIS HOUSE**'. Selphie nodded in compliance, knowing well how Devin reacts to her disobedience.

"That's my dear." He added gently letting his hardened expression dissolve. He walked back to Selphie and placed his hands around her arms. Selphie gazed up at him innocently, unsure of what he'd do next. With a firm jerk, Devin pulled Selphie in and forced a hard, rough kiss. He held Selphie still with a tight grip on her arms and forced his tongue down her throat. After a few moments, he let Selphie go easily letting her fall back on the bed. "It truly is good to have you back home, my dear Selphie." With that, Devin let himself out.

Selphie felt uneasy. She brought her hand to her lips. Devin seldom kissed her, and especially never like that.

_"Selphie… I'm your boyfriend." He said quietly. "Right?"_  
_"Course' Irvy, we said so this morning." Selphie replied in the same meek voice._  
_"Then why were you kissing Nida?"_  
_"He asked me to."_

_Irvine gently grasped Selphie's shoulders. "Selphie, don't you know what it means to have a boyfriend?" To this, his small little companion shook her head. He leaned his head until his forehead leaned against hers. "It means that, I'm the only guy who gets to kiss you." He puckered his lips letting them just barely brush Selphie's nose. "And you, my little lady are the only girl who gets to kiss me." _

Selphie hugged her knees and rested her chin on them. Surely, Irvine wouldn't be angry. He would understand that Mr. Devin wasn't just anyone, he was someone very important to Selphie. She wouldn't be alive today had it not been for him. She held back some forming tears and looked out the window by her bed. A light snow flurry began to fall. Selphie sighed, as for anyone else kissing her, she would never leave the house, and therefore it would never be a problem.

After gazing at the vast white blankness outside for a few minutes, Selphie slowly went to her bag of items sitting by the fireplace. She pulled out the new garments of clothing, marveling at their good quality. They all appeared to be clothes just like the ones she wore back at Mr. Devin's manor. After pulling out all her new clothes, Selphie reached in the bag and pulled out her one remaining uniform. She knew if Mr. Devin discovered she still had it, it'd be thrown away just as her other wonderful possessions were.

Selphie hugged the shirt and skirt to her chest as she looked around the cabin for a place to safely store them. She grabbed the bag, tipped out any remaining contents, stuffed her uniform back inside, and crawled under her bed leaving the bag as far from sight as she could manage. After assuring her uniform was safe as possible, she looked back at the contents of the bag and noticed the copy of _The Legend of Gilgamesh _resting atop the pile of new clothes.

Having nothing better to do, Selphie grabbed the book and sat herself back on the bed. She gingerly opened the cover and noticed a stamp on the first page reading, "**PROPERTY OF BALAMB GARDEN LIBRARY**." Selphie guiltily bit her lip realizing she wasn't really allowed to take the book with her. Since it was the only possession Devin allowed her to keep, she found it hard to regret the action.

Selphie turned the pages returning to where she last read of Galn's adventures to capture Gilgamesh and began to indulge herself again. As usual, Galn took the form of Irvine in her mind, despite the fact the description of Galn sounded nothing like the cowboy. Selphie held the book tightly and read dedicatedly, imaging Irvine with every fiber of her attention.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

A full week passed by since Selphie's disappearance from Garden. In that week, Garden saw just as little of Irvine as they did of Selphie. With the rare exception of mealtime, that too being limited to about a meal a day, Irvine locked himself in his dorm and let no one else in.

Having a day short of an entire week of classes, Rinoa had grown irritated with Irvine's drama and decided his act of becoming a hermit could not be a healthy coping mechanism. After his eighth day of his new institution, Rinoa stormed to Irvine's dorm, pounding the door until he finally opened it.

"Irvine Kinneas!" She snapped letting herself in.

Irvine scowled at his bursting friend and sat himself down already deciding not to pay her any mind, despite her having invaded his room. As he had been all week, Irvine sat barely clothed, his hair a mangled mess, a prominent gruff of facial hair grown, and pale red eyed face.

"What do you want Rin?" Irvine yawned and said sonorously.

"You said to leave you alone for a couple of days, it's been a week Irvine and you haven't done a thing! I don't think you've even showered!" Rinoa swooped in and took a sniff at Irvine. She fanned her hand before her nose, disgusted. "Ugh you reek!"

"Anyone ever tell ya what good pep-talker you are Rinoa?" Irvine responded in flat unenthusiastic sarcasm.

Rinoa looked at him, her eyes squinted. "I'm not here to pep talk you. I'm here to make some action happen. Come on, you've sat here sobbing for a week now. It's time for you to shower, and get out of this room."

Irvine exhaled with irritation, "Then what Rinoa? A big ole' study night like we used to have?"

"Nope, Zell invited you, Squall and me for a movie night. So get up and get cleaned, because I volunteered us to get a movie from town. I thought you could use the fresh air. Hurry up!"

"I'll get it myself." Irvine replied walking towards the door, and then holding it open for Rinoa.

"I'll go with you, if you haven't noticed this is me trying to force some human contact on to you."

"That's what tonight's about. I just would rather go on my own." With that, Irvine shut the door in Rinoa's face. A slur of Rinoa's snapping retorts followed the door's slam. Irvine waiting for them to subside before grabbing a towel and walking out to the showers.

Even though Rinoa wanted Irvine to have some fun and possibly cheer up, he couldn't imagine the thought of it. Of course, Rinoa wouldn't hear of that, so he would go. Experiences had taught him that arguing with Rinoa was a futile battle. Either she grew angry, impatient, and stormed off, or she got what she wanted. Either way, Irvine would be left in an unpleasant situation.

The sounds of other students passed Irvine without even a second thought about them. No voice captured his attention, no echo intrigued him, and no clatter fazed him. Irvine traveled a like phantom, soundlessly minding his own business his thoughts swirling in his mind. He showered and exited without making eye contact with anyone.

Although he'd spent a week thinking about it, nothing made sense. How could Selphie leave so carelessly? Did Balamb Garden and everyone here really mean that little to her?

Irvine sat down on a bench amidst the shower room, a towel wrapped around his waist. He hung his head feeling wet locks of hair adhere to his face. He sighed, loudly. Maybe he should stop dwelling what happened and finally start thinking of letting it pass behind him. Irvine didn't imagine it'd be a short process, but the longer he sat just moping the longer it'd take to heal.

_Maybe a shower was a good idea, _Irvine thought to himself with a smile. He pulled another towel and threw over his head, rubbing his long hair dry.

"I may regret asking this, but what's wrong with you?" Irvine pulled the towel away from his face and saw Nida standing before him, still dress obviously not showered yet.

Irvine shrugged, "It's complicated."

"Selphie left you?" Nida asked promptly, with a hint of excitement.

"…I guess it's not that complicated then."

Nida looked almost as if he were beaming. "Selphie left you huh? Well come on Casanova, why?"

"I wish I knew." Irvine replied shortly already regretting indulging Nida on the subject.

"Perhaps it's crude of me to ask this, but does this mean Selphie is single?"

Irvine came to his feet and chuckled weakly. "Nida, she didn't break up with me. She left, like literally left Garden. She went home to Trabia." He forced a haughty smile, "Come on Nida, what girl has dumped me? Even if she had, she wouldn't rebound to you."

With an air of feigned confidence, Irvine left the showers leaving Nida in a statement of discouragement. Normally a hint of guilt would linger with Irvine as he downed Nida for really no reason other than to make himself feel better. However, today a shower and piece of his old reputation had made him feel much better, for the time being anyways.

Irvine entered his room and began to dress. Halfway through it, a knock sounded at his door. Irritated Irvine looked up back and snapped, "Rinoa I said I'll get the movie alone! I'll see you tonight. Go away, I'm changing!"

The knock sounded again. Irvine scoffed and marched to the door only half dressed, his hair still incredibly wet. He yanked the doorknob and pulled the door open ready to shower Rinoa with a stream of frustration, and then tell her about his encounter with Nida. However, instead of Rinoa, outside his dorm stood a heavily robed Garden Faculty member.

"Irveen Kinneas?" He asked sternly, his face completely concealed by the shadow of his flat hat.

Irvine rubbed his neck embarrassedly and quickly threw a shirt over his head. _I shoulda known that knock was too polite to be Rinoa! _ "S-sorry, I thought you were someone else. Uh yeah, it's Irvine. What can I do for ya?"

"I have a message for you."

"From who? Headmaster Cid, Headmistress Edea?" Irvine looked hopefully at the mysterious faculty member. Could it be news that Selphie was coming back? That she made a mistake in leaving and decided to return?

The faculty shook his head. He held out his heavily robed arm. Irvine opened his hand to whatever it was the faculty wanted to hand him. Somewhere from between the folds of his long sleeve, a square piece of paper fell and landed in Irvine's palm. He held it up reading the neat handwriting.

_Selphie Tilmitt to Irvene Kinneas:_

"_I'm sorry but I had to go, but I'll never forget him." _

Irvine looked up in awe, "This is from Selphie."

"Yes, I am aware of that. She asked me to relay the message to you before she left."

"But she's been gone a week, what took you?"

"I have more important matters than to play messenger, boy. Be glad I got to it at all."

Deciding it was futile to argue with the worker, who obviously would only show more attitude, Irvine held the paper up and read it again. "I don't get it, why didn't she just tell me this herself?"

"If I recall correctly, and I always do, she was not allowed the time to wait for her peers. She was told to pack and leave immediately." The Garden Faculty turned around, content with whatever answers he'd left Irvine with and disappeared down the halls without another word.

Irvine closed the door and slowly walked to his bed. He sat down pondering. "Sorry I had to go…" He repeated slowly, letting the words sink it. "I'm sorry but I had to go…" With each repetition, Irvine could clearly Selphie's sweet little voice in his mind saying the same words to him. "…had to go." Restated Irvine a final time.

"She had to go," Irvine started to conclude, his voice growing in excitement. "She had to go, she was forced to go! She didn't leave me on purpose!" Kissing the small paper, Irvine leapt to his feet in joy. "She didn't leave me on purpose!"

Irvine's joy was short lived as a new worry swept over him. If Selphie had been forced to leave Garden, did that mean she was in danger? Was she alright? Would she be safe back in Trabia? A new despair plagued the cowboy, would Selphie live to see him again?

'''''''''''''''''''''''''

Selphie's first week of isolation passed by, surprisingly not as terribly as she first imagined. Mr. Devin had come more often than she even imagined, twice since she arrived to be exact. Selphie still felt unsettled by her forced reunions with Devin but as he was really the only human contact available she was accepting to them.

As Devin mentioned, a grocer came in the middle of the week, but the small man made no contact whatsoever. He didn't speak or look at her. Quickly and silently, he filled the fridge and cabinets with a few items and left wordlessly. Selphie had even attempted to speak to him, but to no avail.

The week drew to an end, and Mr. Devin promised a visit once more before his scheduled kept him too detained. Although Mr. Devin was rough and uncomfortable to be with, Selphie already dreaded him not coming as often as he had been.

Surprisingly enough, Selphie spent as much time trying to hold on to her education. She practiced writing and read her book for most of the time. The more she wrote however, the more she missed Balamb. She'd spend hours on her bed gazing out the window, imagining the life she would still be living. Her daydreams never came without an image of Irvine.

Her heart burned with every passing second that she remained in the cabin. She wondered with every coming day if a chance to return to Balamb would arrive. Until then, she would delve deep into Galn's adventure's to imagine Irvine and her together, in a land faraway and make-believe.

"_Galn went into town after another grueling trial with Gilgamesh. The passed weeks were cruel, as Gilgamesh had only grown angry with Galn and now not only avoided his capture, but punished Galn in the process. Exhausted, but yet determined, Galn came the nearest town to rest and to resupply._

_As he passed through, he found a local postman sorting his parchments. A look of joy spread across Galn's face, as for every day he spent in the wildness in attempts to capture Gilgamesh, he'd written a letter for his beloved Leona. He retrieved the thick stack of letters from his parcel and handed it to the postman. The postman carefully inspected the letter before reaching into his own collection._

'_This was sent from this very address, do you know anyone by the name of Leona?' _

'_Yes!' Galn cried, his heart full of joy, 'She is the air I breath, and the reason my heart beats! My wonderful Leona, she's kept track of my travels, how clever is my love? Please let me see the letter my good man!' _

_The postman traded documents and Galn ripped open the letter and began to read as hastily as his eyes could manage:_

_My darling Galn,_

_I'm afraid you must stop your adventure. I know you would be successful, but I fear there will be no one for you to return to, my beloved. Due to my insolence and refusal of all suitors, my father has sentenced me to exile. I shall be leaving for the Galbadian desert to perish. I love you with all my heart Galn, but I fear there will be no chance of us together in this life. I wish you to marry whomever you wish, and be merry. Take care my love, yours forever Leona._

_An uncontrollable sorrow consumed Galn immediately, without a word, he ran. He ran as far as he could through the town, leagues into the forest beyond. He wept openly and screamed for Gilgamesh to appear. When the large armed demi-god came forth, Galn fell to his knees and cried._

'_Gilgamesh! The reason for my existence is gone! Do me a mercy and kill me now! I do not wish to live without Leona! My entire endeavor to capture you was to win a chance to marry her! Now she will be dead within weeks, and I have no way to stop it. In fact, I have caused this! Kill me, Gilgamesh, do as you've wanted to do with me and a favor as well.'_

_Gilgamesh raised his sword and held it high. He swung low making the wind snap. Galn looked about realizing his head was still intact; he peered up and saw Gilgamesh, sword still erect. _

'_I honor your pursuit for love, if you wish to save her, I shall give you my aide. I shall give you the strength to reach your beloved, and in payment you must never attempt to hunt me again!' _

Selphie read further, engrossed by the rising action. A loud knock at the door forced her out of her mental play of Irvine with Gilgamesh. She looked at the door as a knock sounded again. Although Selphie knew it was Mr. Devin at the door, she felt hesitant to open it. When the knock sounded a third time, Selphie leapt to her feet and answered the door not wanting to anger Mr. Devin.

"Selphie, my dear." He said rather stoically letting himself in. "What kept you?"

Unsure of the proper way to excuse her lateness, Selphie bit her lip and nervously responded, "I was just—"

"Studying?" Devin asked noticing the mess of papers on the table with Selphie's practice writings on it. Selphie began to protest, but Devin swiftly came to the table and began reading the random names written on it. Unsure of what to use for practice, Selphie wrote down any words she could remember. Some were flowing sentences as from Matron's history lessons, or Quistis' fighting lectures, but most of them were names of everyone.

"Well, I guess you could call it studying." Selphie responded slowly not sure what studying even entailed.

Mr. Devin continued to inspect the paper as he released a small, "Hmph," after a moment or two. He put the paper down and turned to Selphie. With one hand, he reached into his suit and pulled out a small bottle. "A cup please." He requested calmly.

Selphie quickly retrieved a glass and brought to Mr. Devin. He unscrewed his bottle and began to pour the clear liquid into it. "Selphie, it appears to me you aren't happy here. Am I correct?"

"I-I'm happy." Selphie answered innocently. After all, at one point in her life this was what she considered her ideal living conditions.

"But you could be happier." Devin corrected finishing the contents of the bottle into the glass.

Selphie shrugged, "S-sure I guess." She added a small chuckle. Devin smiled and came to her with the glass in hand.

"Drink this my dear." He ordered.

"Is it water?" Selphie asked inspecting the transparent drink.

"It's something my pharmaceutical company has been working on. Have you heard of G.F's my dear?"

Selphie nodded recalling them from Instructor Trepe's lessons.

"G.F's are powerful beings that give their user unthinkable abilities, however, they take a place in the person's mind to do that. It used to be a belief that the occupation of the G.F. in a human mind simply took the space up for memories. However, researchers learned that is not the case, instead what a G.F. does by no control of its own is release a— shall we call it, magic— that slowly erases memories in the mind. The more time and power a G.F. expends, the more of that magic that is created. However, no matter how much a G.F. is used, it's still a small amount of magic released. The person could still recover their memories with enough thought, normally. I can't imagine how much a person would have to use a G.F. in order to permanently erase anything."

Selphie paid close attention, although not understanding most of what Devin said. She nodded attentively, curious to what all this had to do with anything.

"What I have in my hand," Mr. Devin held the glass up and gave it a small swish, "is a manmade version of that magic. This version is stronger than the G.F's and can permanently erase memories with one serving. It's a magnificent process really, all you must do is think of what you wish to forget, drink, and the work is done." Reaching for Selphie's hand, Devin carefully placed the glass in her grip. "I've brought this for you so you may forget about Balamb, and be happy here."

Shocked, Selphie looked at the glass as her breathed quickened. It'd only been a week since she'd left Garden. So much had happened: she'd lost all her friends, her wonderful home, brought back to a place she swore never to return to, lost all her possessions from Garden, and now her memory too? Devin eyed her carefully, waiting for her to do as he said. "Can I drink it later?" Selphie asked, trying not to sound too earnest.

"I suppose." Devin said with a smile. He took the glass from her and set it down. "After all I did come to see you, and I believe once you drink that you'd become far too sleepy to be much company."

Selphie tried not to be surprised when Devin grabbed her in his arms and roughly kissed on the lips. His strong hands held her tightly and uncomfortably in place. Although the desire to squirm traversed her mind, Selphie couldn't imagine what would happen if she did. She remained still as Devin set her on the bed.

Turning her head to the side, she looked at the glass on the table, the light of the room gleaming through it like crystal. _Maybe it is a good idea to forget Balamb, it'd stop hurting so much._ Devin unbuckled his pants and loosened his jacket. Holding Selphie roughly in place, he groped her small chest and waist, his weight beginning to press down on her. Biting her lip, Selphie squeezed her eyes shut as Devin's hand prodded and pinched at her.

_Forget Balamb, forget Matron, Rinoa, Zell, Squall, Nida, Amy, Instructor Trepe, Seifer…I should forget them. I should forget Irvy. _Tears formed in her eyes, sliding from the ends and down onto the bed. _I should forget Irvy, I miss him so much… how can I forget him? _Mr. Devin yanked Selphie's legs apart.

_No! I can't! I won't! I love Irvy! I'll never forget him, NEVER! _Holding Selphie ever firmly, Devin plunged himself her, causing Selphie to release a slight whimper. She opened her eyes to the glass shining on the table as Devin breathed heavily between thrusts. _I want Irvy, save me Irvy! I want you to be here now! _More tears fell down as her lips parted.

"Irvy…"

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine walked down the road, his eyes focused in the distance, his pace slow, and his mind elsewhere. The words from Selphie's message repeated in his head, like echoes of a deep cave. He could hear her small voice pleadingly saying them; he could see her eyes begging to convey it correctly. Irvine felt a tug at his heart, what if Selphie was hurt now? Headmaster Cid had let her gone without her choice, and he didn't know what to do.

"_I'm sorry but I had to go, but I'll never forget him."_

Breathing slowly, Irvine tried to imagine all the possibilities of getting Selphie back. Suppose he traveled to Trabia, where would he find her? Her old house? The fountain? Her clerk job? She was one girl, with very little to verify her.

"_I'm sorry but I had to go, but I'll never forget him."_

His heart wrenched tightly as he imagined Selphie's innocent face looking at him repeating the message he'd read over a hundred times since he left his room. What if she came back to Garden? He'd hold her and never let her leave his side, he would protect her, he would.

His mind lost to the world, he scarcely noticed making it to town, and far enough to see the movie store. He tried to concentrate on what he came for stepping into the store. He scanned the shelves of movies unable to comprehend the words and pictures.

He held up a movie and inspected it. The words on it were a language he understood, but for the life of him, he couldn't make sense of it. The picture looked a blur of colors. Taking a deep breath, Irvine passed aisles and aisles of movies with incoherent names and fuzzy illustrations until he came to the last row. He carefully eyed the films and stopped at one whose picture appeared crystal clear. Irvine grasped the movie and read the title aloud.

"The Dragon Knight…" The cover displayed a young man with long flowing black hair in close view, while a Ruby dragon flared its head behind him.

_"The Dragon Knight! It's about a Sorceress who gets captured by this biiig red dragon. So her knight goes on this really hard journey to get her back. It's so sweet, and the knight is super cool!" Selphie smiled brightly, "Haven't you heard of it? Mr. Devin said it was really famous. The guy who played the knight is like a president or something." _

Without another thought, Irvine purchased the movie and left, his eyes glued to the cover. He flipped it side to side inspecting every inch of it. When he arrived to Zell's dorm, he soundless handed him the movie and sat himself down the cover still in his hand under close inspection.

Zell, Amy, Rinoa, and Squall groaned and complained at Irvine, but their voices were mute to him. He continued to gaze at the cover almost longingly as Zell finally started the movie despite everyone's protests.

"I thought you were getting the movie Rinoa!"

"Irvine wanted to go alone!"

"Please tell me we're not watching this."

"It could be fun, let's give it a try."

"Well it is pretty historical."

"Squall I've never seen you so red!"

"I'm leaving."

"Don't be upset, Zelly, make him stay!"

Once the movie began, Irvine watched enthused, his mind filtering his friend's comments completely. He couldn't hear Zell's historical tidbits, Amy's added commentary, Rinoa's joy from Squall's reactions, or Squall's threatening statements to turn the movie off. He could only see the film, and imagine how Selphie would be watching it with him. Rinoa's mission of cheering Irvine up was a success.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Selphie lay still as Devin went and refreshed himself. He suited up properly and washed his face of perspiration. Once he exited, he eyed Selphie who hadn't much moved. "Is something wrong my dear?"

Slowly Selphie lifted her head, "Nope," she said softly. Weakly she lifted her now sore legs and came to a sitting position. Her body ached from Devin's rough handling. "I'm fine." She forced a smile and looked up at Mr. Devin.

Mr. Devin returned the grin. He walked forward, as he continued to button up his shirt and cuffs. "My dear, what is an 'irvy'?"

Selphie looked blankly at him unable to respond. She blinked and finally formed a thought before saying, "What do you mean?"

"It was on your paper Selphie, it's no word I've ever heard. Care to share its meaning with me?" He thinned his eyes, but remained smiling still.

Carefully choosing her words, Selphie responded slowly, "Irvy, I mean Irvine, is a friend of mine. From Balamb."

"A friend you say?" Devin asked now looking another direction. Selphie nodded in response afraid to speak anymore. Mr. Devin didn't pester with another question, after he was fully dressed he picked up the glass from the table and brought it to Selphie. "Here you are my dear, drink up."

Dauntingly, Selphie gazed at the glass, hesitant to lay a finger on it. She looked back up at Devin, "Maybe later? I'm not thirsty…"

"I want you to drink it now." Devin said sternly.

"But I will drink it, later I promise." Selphie said deserperately almost defiantly.

"No, you will drink it now."

Mr. Devin grasped Selphie's arm and yanked it, forcing her to her feet. He held the glass to his lips prompting her to sip. Immediately, Selphie pursed her lips closed. "Drink it Selphie." Devin continued pressing the rim of the glass to her closed mouth. Selphie shook head, keeping her lips as tightly sealed as she could.

Selphie's defiance took over Devin immediately, he looked at her coldly and wrapped her in one arm, bringing the draught to her lips and shoving it through her clinched lips. A small sip snuck passed her lip, Selphie could feel the cold liquid in her mouth. She screamed out and spit the contents out. "No! I don't want to drink it!" She cried out.

Devin held her even tighter causing Selphie to kick and squirm as much as she could. Her arms tugged at his in attempts to release her, she flailed her legs out and twisted her head side to side. "NOOO!" She continued to scream only making Devin's grip on her tighter. He snuck a hand to her jaw and squeezed forcing her mouth open. Selphie howled and cried, her vision blurred, as every appendage fought to escape.

"Drink it." Devin said coldly forcing the contents of the glass into her mouth. He muffled her lips and nose, holding her still until he heard her swallow. Selphie resisted letting the icy cold liquid swirl about her mouth, but as Devin cut the air from her nose, she began to feel light headed. Unable to hold her breath any longer, she let the liquid slip down her throat, freezing her body as it went down. "Now think about Balamb, think of all your friends, do it now."

Selphie, still muffled, squeezed her eyes closed and tried her hardest to do exactly the opposite of what Devin said. Of course, Devin saying Balamb only made her think of it. She tried to force other thoughts in her mind but Devin said Balamb repeatedly bringing the focus of the Garden and the wonderful people who lived there.

After a moment, Devin silenced as Selphie's cries thinned out and stopped. He dropped the glass carelessly and released Selphie in the same manner. She fell to the ground with a loud thump her body lifelessly sprawled on floor. Devin adjusted his shirt as Selphie's squirming had shuffled his appearance. He cleared his throat and looked to the door.

"I'm pleased you finally saw it my way, my dear." He said coldly before letting himself out.

Selphie remained on the floor, her insides burning from the intense cold of the drink. Her vision cleared and blurred as tears fell and formed. She tried to think of something else, anything but Garden. Her mind could only center on her friends, her classes— and of course Irvine.

The draught took affect immediately as the pictures in her head became fuzzy and her whole body seemed exhausted and drained. Barely conscious Selphie relished her last memories of Irvine as her mind slipped in slumber.

_Nothing fixes a thing so intensely in the memory as the wish to forget it._

_-Michel de Montaigne_


	39. Chapter 38

"_Beautiful boy!" _

_Beautiful World  
Chapter Thirty-Eight_

Selphie opened her eyes slowly. She blinked several times as the room around her became more clearly with every blink. After she fully focused, she sat up and gazed about the cabin trying to understand what had happened. Her head spun madly with a terrible headache and her body felt weak, tired and drained. For some reason, she'd been sleeping on the floor, in an uncomfortable position on top of that.

Still unable to make sense of the situation, Selphie slowly came to her feet and scanned the room for indications of why she was asleep on the floor. She yawned loudly, she felt as though she'd been asleep for ages. How long had she been asleep? She walked into the kitchen and noticed some new items refilled, obviously, the grocer had come and gone.

There was no other sign of the time she'd spent unconscious. Selphie shrugged, no longer interested as she walked over to her bed. Sitting in the corner sat a book. Curiously, Selphie carefully took the book in her hands and read its title aloud. "_The Legend of Gilgamesh_…" She flipped it open to the first few chapters reading a few sentences. The story seemed familiar, the wording in particular cued in her mind as if she'd read it before. _When did I start reading? _Selphie thought, as she couldn't for the life of her figure out when she'd read the book, but knowing she must've.

"Maybe Mr. Devin gave it to me— that's probably what he did! When I came here, it must've been when he gave me all those wonderful new clothes!" She hugged the book to her chest and thumbed through the pages again. She scanned the chapters until the content no longer seemed familiar and began to read.

"_For weeks on end, Galn and Gilgamesh traveled persistently on foot. With only their weapons and will, they conquered any odds and challenges that came before them. Galn kept his goal beating in his heart— to get to the Dingo desert." _

Selphie imagined the picture in her head. She saw Galn form instantly in her mind as tall lean man, with long silky chestnut hair, a lighter color than hers, with brilliant blue eyes and the most charming smile she could imagine. A great colorful faced monster, Gilgamesh, stood beside him as they crossed miles and miles to get across the world to the Galbadian desert.

Satisfied with the amount she'd read, Selphie closed the book. She looked around the room wondering what now to do for entertainment. Just as she'd thought, her stomach growled fiercely with a clenching pain. "Guess I'm hungry." She laughed, weakly making her way to the kitchen.

She took out a few items and began to eat relishing their wonderful taste. She'd never have to go hungry again, she'd never have to freeze again, she'd never be at the terrible fountain again. As Mr. Devin told her, every need of hers was met in her beloved new cabin. She smiled, life couldn't be more perfect.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

"I thought he was beginning to cheer up, what happened to him?

"He won't talk to me, maybe he'll talk to you?"

"You guys are best friends, why would he talk to me?"

"Just get in there!"

"….ooooow OOWWW! What is wrong with you? OOOW! I'M GOING I'M GOING!"

Irvine eyed his dorm door from his bed as he listened to Zell and Rinoa's conversation ending with Zell thundering through the door. Sitting erect against the headboard, Irvine raised an eyebrow at the blonde who came tumbling in. "Nice, discreet." He mocked flatly.

Zell came to his feet and brushed himself off. "That Rinoa is crazy, and she scratches like a cat berserked!"

A faint smile touched Irvine's lips as he raised his arm revealing faded scar lines on his upper arm. "I tell girls that these happened on the battlefield, but really it's just when Rinoa gets real frustrated and wants somethin'."

They both chuckled as Zell took a seat on the corner of Irvine's bed. "So what's wrong man, you don't seem as down in the dumps as you were last week. Why the drama of locking yourself in here?"

"A guy can't hang in his room now?"

"Sure, guys can, you can't. You never act like this. It's creeping people out."

Irvine turned his head annoyed. "I just don't feel like going out none, that okay?" He crossed his arms and sighed. With every step he took, he imagined poor Selphie, his wonderful Selphie somewhere lost and afraid in Trabia.

"Irvine, come on man, this isn't you! You don't let girls get you down! If Selphie left you, let's go forget about her!"

A twisting pain lurched in Irvine's gut hearing her name aloud. He turned to Zell and squinted his eyes. How dare anyone talk so callously about Selphie? As if she'd never been here, befriended them all and became apart of their lives? How easily had they forgotten her? "No." Irvine said sternly.

"You're turning into Squall on us! And he's turning into you!" Zell loudly stamped on the floor. "Tch, I dunno what Rinoa wanted me to accomplish but I'm outta here." Turning on his heels, Zell hunched his back and slipped his hands into his back pockets muttering to himself, "What is wrong with the world these days."

Irvine watched Zell go to the door before he finally said weakly, "She didn't leave me Zell."

Zell halted and turned his head back. "Uh, yeah she did. We all know what happened."

"No, I mean, it's like, she didn't have a choice. She didn't do it on purpose."

"How do you know that?"

Reaching into his pocket, Irvine pulled out the small piece of paper the Garden Faculty aide brought almost a week earlier. The paper was now wrinkled and worn with Irvine's constant fiddling. Cracks ran along the paper where the cowboy had folded and unfolded it numerous times. He held the paper out as Zell came and carefully brought it to his face to read.

"I don't get it." He said a moment later. "Who wrote this?"

"Some messenger guy, he said that the day Selphie left, she didn't even have the chance to stick around and wait for us. So, she asked this dork to send this message. Look! She didn't wanna go!"

At that moment, Rinoa opened the door and let herself in. "Selphie was forced to leave? Who would do that? Headmaster Cid sai—"

"Headmaster Cid probably didn't know any better." Irvine interrupted, his voice falling into a tone of sadness. "Heck, we didn't know any better. We assumed the worse Rin. I was so mad at her for going, and now I don't know what to think. Is she hurt? Is she safe? Am I ever going to see her again?"

Irvine stared back to Rinoa and Zell pleadingly, "None of ya'll can tell me that can ya?" He folded his arms back and turned his head away, "So like, just do me a favor, and— and just let me be for now."

"But Irvine—" Rinoa began to protest. Zell put a large hand on her shoulder stopping her.

"Let's leave him alone Rinoa." He said pulling her slightly.

Begrudgingly, Rinoa glanced at Irvine sadly and followed Zell out into the hallway. They closed the door and walked a few feet away before starting to speak again.

"Man that's scary, Selphie was basically kidnapped right out of Garden." Zell uttered quietly. "Shouldn't we do something about it?"

Rinoa grasped at her necklace around her neck and shook her head, "What can we do? Who would believe us? Let's suppose they did believe us, what can anyone do? We don't know where Selphie is, and Headmaster Cid doesn't even know the man's full name. I guess we just have to hope for the best."

"Guess you're right." Zell sighed.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Selphie sat down at her table with a small sandwich she'd made. She sent down her food atop a pile of papers that littered the entire surface of the table. "Huh? Did I make this mess?" She thought aloud as she shuffled through the papers reading the unfamiliar information on it.

Scribbled across the papers were random facts and statements about things Selphie had never heard of, such as G.F., junction, and status attacks. Some statements mentioned places she'd heard of, but events she had not like the Lunatic Pandora crisis of Esthar, the Galbadian civil war, and the Sorceress Wars.

Also across the papers were random scribbled words she had no understanding to whatsoever. _Balamb, enstructor Trep, Matron, Zell, Rinowa_, Selphie read the words to herself wondering what the odd words could possibly mean.

"Irvyn…Irveen?" She read the last word on the paper aloud. Unlike the other words it'd been written numerously. She kept repeating the name with a few differences. Eventually she opened her mouth and said clearly, "Irvine." Her heart skipped a beat upon saying the name aloud. Although she had no recollection of who or what an 'Irvine' was, something in her felt for sure that she was correctly saying it.

She glanced at the paper again reading Irvine's name, her heart almost hurting each time. "Maybe I'm sick?" Selphie thought aloud, dropping the paper and walking to her bed. Perhaps the grocer had brought rotten food, or perhaps she was still weak. She closed her eyes and tried to rest, the name Irvine still echoing in her head.

Before her mind could drift off into slumber, a loud sound from the door came as Mr. Devin shoved the nearly frozen shut door open.

"Mr. Devin!" Selphie cheered in glee leaping to her feet. She rushed before him and smiled widely overjoyed to have some human contact again. "Mr. Devin I missed you!" She danced tip-toe to tip-toe.

Mr. Devin smiled shutting the cabin door behind him. "It's always a pleasure to see you too my dear. How do you feel?"

Selphie blinked in confusion. She tilted her head eying Devin curiously, "How do I feel?" _That's a weird way to start talking, how do I feel? 'How are you' sounds right. Eh who cares. _"I feel fine— I guess. How do you feel?" Selphie said slowly, still confused.

"I'm perfect, my dear. You, however, were ill almost a week ago. I gave you some medicine when I last came and it made you fall asleep. Judging by your appearance I'd say you feel all better then?"

_Medicine? Sick? How come I don't remember that… hmm maybe that's why I was asleep on the floor! _Selphie smiled widely and nodded her head. "Yep! Tee-hee, all better!"

Patting Selphie's shoulder lightly, Devin grinned and let himself further into the cabin trying to warm up. Selphie turned around watching Mr. Devin rub his hands together before taking his coat off. The names from the paper she read still lingered in her thoughts. As Devin began to shed his coat and other outdoor garments, Selphie took a step closer and spoke.

"Mr. Devin, what's a… Balamb?" Selphie asked remembering it was the first word on the paper.

Devin turned his head and squinted his eyes crossly. Still speaking in a calm voice, he answered, "It's a place far away from here my dear, why do you ask?"

Selphie pointed to the table still bearing the papers with the random facts and names. "It was written on that."

Wordlessly, Devin snatched the papers off the desk and read them quickly. "Well then— these here are mine, Selphie. I must've left them during my last visit." He held the papers together from the top rim and began to tear them apart, "but no matter, I no longer need them." He gave the small stack a few more rips before tossing the fragments into the empty fireplace. "Start a fire, it's chilly in here. I'm going to freshen up." Devin said sternly as he walked off towards the bathroom.

Selphie knelt by the fireplace as she placed a piece of wood inside. Her eyes gazed at the small squares of ripped paper as she wondered if she could ask what the significance of the word 'Irvine' was. She shrugged her shoulders and struck a match. Letting her curiosity subside, she tossed the lit match into the fireplace and watched the papers curl up and fade into ash.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Rinoa watched Instructor Akii walk dully from corner to corner of the front of the room. She strained to keep her eyes open, occasionally glancing at Irvine, who unlike the rest of the class, didn't have to pay attention. On account of the 2nd SeeD rank exam, any SeeD in class could spend the time necessary on their exam.

However, despite not listening to word Akii said, Irvine still had a blank test. An hour of class had drawn by and Irvine had not so much as written his name onto the sheet of questions. Rinoa squinted her eyes irritable at Irvine's laziness. He simply sat there with a blank expression and an even more careless attitude.

"Irvine!" She hissed under her breath.

Sure enough, Irvine blinked out of his daze and turned his head to Rinoa. He raised his eyebrows silently emoting "What's up?"

"Work on your test!" She continued in a snappy whisper.

Irvine nodded slowly. He picked up his pen and quickly scribbled down the answer the column writing in the first answer choice for each question. He came to the last question, wrote his name, and slid his exam down the study panel. He shined a sarcastic smile Rinoa's way, tipped his hat and returned to staring blankly into space.

Class ended, the students all left, and Irvine turned in his failure of an exam. As he and Rinoa walked down the hall, she glared at him angrily. "So are we going to just ignore this?"

"Ignore what?" Irvine asked flatly.

"Ignore the fact that you're letting everything slip and destroy because you're too broken up to care anymore!"

Irvine stopped and squinted his eyes, "I'm in class aren't I? Give me a break." He reached into his pocket and pulled out the small chain and pendant Selphie left.

Rinoa put her hands on her hips. "Really Irvine? This is getting old!"

A dark glare came across Irvine's face as he stared into Rinoa's eyes coldly, "Getting old? How could you be so heartless Rinoa? She was our friend, she was apart of our lives, she was—" Irvine turned away stopping himself. He glanced at the pendant again and squeezed his fingers closed over it. "If you forgotten about her already, fine, but if I need more time you leave me alone."

He swept passed Rinoa and disappeared into the massing crowds.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Selphie opened her eyes. She shut them back closed after realizing how much light was in the room. Hesitantly, she opened one green eye at a time adjusting the brightness. She looked around, realizing she was no longer in her cabin. Instead, she sat on small white and blue bed in little room. There was a desk across from her, a nightstand by the bed, a closet by the exit, and a window behind her head. She turned around and gazed outside to a sea of green grass billowing in the wind.

"Wow…" She gasped at the marvelous and colorful sight. She'd never witnessed a sky so blue, grass so emerald, and mountains so majestic.

"What's the big deal? It's like always like that."

Nearly giving herself whiplash, Selphie spun around to see another person standing in the room. He leaned himself against the door dressed in a long beige coat, and black cowboy hat on his head tilted to conceal his face. His back rested against the door and his arms rested in a fold across his torso.

Selphie breathed in deeply. She was frightened to her very core but more determined to show whomever this stranger was that she'd not be taken advantage of. She leapt off the bed on her feet holding her small arms up with fists. "You get out of here you big meanie!" She shouted dauntingly.

The stranger pushed himself against the door and stood straight, his hat still veiling his face. He held his arms out and jerked his head a bit, "Are ya talking to me?"

"Yeah!" Selphie snapped with all the aggression she could muster.

Gently, the stranger gripped the edge of his hat and pulled it back onto his head revealing his handsome face. He smiled charmingly with deep blue eyes gazing back at Selphie. "Don't tell me ya want to use those fist of fury against me?" He said with a chuckle.

Almost instantly, Selphie dropped her stance as she met eyes with the stranger. She opened her mouth, but no words came out. Something about this person struck her in way she never felt before. Just meeting his gaze made her feel joyous, calm, and safe. She blinked as a wave of nostalgia passed over her, she simply couldn't fight the feeling that she knew this person.

"Selphie?" He said curiously unsure of why she'd become so quiet and shocked.

"H-how do you know my name?" Selphie mumbled out, her fists still out, but weaker in resolve.

"You're kidding me right? Don't tell me you forgot my name!" The cowboy laughed heartily and kindly, not actually appearing angered by Selphie's supposed faulty memory. He took a step forward, a smile still across his face. Selphie stood frozen in her position; uneasy yet willing when he placed his hands on her shoulders. "Come on, think about it, you know this."

Selphie relaxed her shoulders and slowly returned her arms to her sides. She scanned the man's face desperate for a name to fall on to her tongue. Where did she know him from? "You're… you're Galn, right?" She said finally. The picture of Galn in her memory was the perfect image of the man before her, Galn from her book!

The man tilted his head oddly and shrugged. "Eh sure we could go with that. But uh, why Galn?"

"That's your name right?" Selphie attempted to verify as she watched the man's face look at her oddly. "You're that character from the book— Gilgamesh!"

Still appearing confused, the cowboy glanced at Selphie's bed noticing a copy of the mentioned book. He picked it up with one swift lean over and flipped the contents open. "Galn, a man of great ambition but no title. However, his desire to marry the wonderful Lady Leona was not as far fetched as people believed. Although he had no riches or nobility, Galn was truly a beautiful man inside and out. He had hair dark as the night sky, skin olived from the days in the sun, and eyes as green as earth." He stopped and pinched a lock of his long light brown hair. "Last time I checked a mirror— I don't look a thing like this." He chuckled resting the book down.

"Oh." Selphie sighed sadly, disappointed in herself for not being able to recall the cowboy's name.

"That's okay, you can call me Galn. You can call me whatever you want Sefie." He smiled brightly, "Whatever makes you happy."

"Sefie?" Selphie repeated. Before she could question further she noticed her hands lighter in color, so light they appeared somewhat translucent.

"Leavin' already?" Galn sighed. He lifted Selphie's gaze to meet his, "Come back and see me then, a'right?" He leaned in and placed his lips against her cheek, "something to remember me by," he added with a whisper. Selphie's entire body became lighter, as it did the room around her faded as well until it had engulfed itself in white.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Rinoa stormed into Squall's dorm catching him off guard. Squall, lying on his bed in boredom, hid his surprise well as he slowly faced her. While Rinoa fumed in paces, Squall watched her silence awaiting for his turn to speak.

"He's trying to make me out to be some kind of monster! All I'm trying to do is help him out! You know, not let him make a total jerk and idiot of himself! What kind of gratitude do I get for being a good friend? NOTHING! NOT A THING!"

Sensing an obvious opportunity wasn't going to arise for him to actually pipe in, Squall sat up straight and spoke calmly. "What happened?"

Still more aggravated then words could tell, Rinoa fisted her hands to her side. "Irvine! Of course! What else could it possibly be?"

_Seifer…_Squall thought to himself with a small smile, but remaining silent.

"He's been moping and crying, I mean, what's it been? Three weeks? Ugh I don't know maybe two or so. Either way! He's being such— a—baby!" Rinoa threw herself onto the end of the bed, lying on her back allowing her legs to flail upwards. "When I say something I'm being an inconsiderate, heartless creature who apparently doesn't care that Selphie's gone. Just cause' I'm not crying about it, doesn't mean I don't care! AND WHY DOES IT MATTER SO MUCH SHE'S JUST ONE GIRL!"

Rinoa released a loud groan and covered her face with an arm silencing her rant. The room stayed peaceful in the quietness for a good few minutes before finally Squall broke the silence.

"You're just one girl."

Shocked at Squall's odd comment, Rinoa removed her arm and slowly returned to a sitting position. She glared fiercely at him with her brown eyes wide open.

"You're just one girl, and I'm just one guy. There's nothing special about either of us." Squall remained on his back, facing the ceiling, and not meeting Rinoa's incredibly angry look. "Being just one girl doesn't make you special, you're just born. What makes you special is how others feel about you. If no one cared about you, then you wouldn't be considered important to anyone." Squall finally sat up, his legs planted on the floor, his head crouched over them, still thinking aloud.

"You're special, because you're important to me. Selphie's special because of how important she is to Irvine. To you she's just one girl, to him she's everything."

Rinoa's mouth fell open, "Squall—" she uttered softly. "That's so— so sweet."

Squall turned his head to her and grinned. "Comes when you think so much."

Closing her mouth and replacing it with a smile, Rinoa leaned in and kissed Squall lightly on the lips. "You're everything to me too Squall." She pressed her forehead against his, still able to feel his breath on her lips. Squall reached over ready to lay another on her, however Rinoa leap to her feet cutting him short. "Thanks Squall, I guess I have been pretty harsh on Irvine."

Squall stood up, showing no disdain from Rinoa's abrupt dismissal. He nodded compliantly, "You should go see him."

Rinoa held her hand around her necklace. "You're right." She hugged Squall and exited the room.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Selphie opened her eyes back to the familiar room of her cabin. She pressed her hands against herself feeling her clothes disheveled and in disarray. Gently she put a hand on her cheek where Galn had kissed her in her dream. A smile touched her lips as she though thought of Galn for moment. Her thoughts were interrupted by another familiar voice.

"Awake my dear?" Selphie jerked up to see Mr. Devin seated at the table with a metallic flask in his hand. He turned his head and smiled. "You fell asleep after our, shall we say, routine?"

"Oh, sorry. Guess it wore me out." Selphie replied quietly.

"No worries my dear, I was about to head out myself."

Devin came to his feet and brushed himself off. He'd obviously cleaned and freshened up while Selphie was asleep as he looked the way he did when he first arrived. As he approached the door, he looked back at Selphie, who'd scrambled through her copy of _The Legend of Gilgamesh _instead of paying him any mind. "I'll be leaving then." He said quietly. Selphie smiled and watched him go.

With him gone, Selphie read aloud the same passage that the man from her dream had read. "He had hair dark as the night sky, skin olived from the days in the sun, and eyes as green as earth." Selphie couldn't quite understand the skin tone, but the context clues implied he was darker somehow. The man from her dreams was incredibly fair. Who was he if not the character from her book?

Selphie approached a window and watched Mr. Devin's car drive away in the white empty distance. The only men she really knew much of was Devin and his associates, like Jaxon Ogleworthy, her doctor and now the grocer. Not even all of those men stuck in her mind as vividly and clear as the man she'd just dreamt of.

Sighing hopelessly, Selphie turned her book open to where she last read and continued.

"_After traveling across the world, through forests, oceans, and countless legions of men and monsters, Galn finally made it to his destination. They crossed through the desert searching for a sign of life anywhere. Far on the outskirts where the weather was not as harsh was a small campsite, home to a lovely young lady._

_ Galn approached the woman. Before he could even introduce himself, the woman screamed in delight and embraced him with all her might. "Galn my beloved! You've come for me! How did you manage to cross such a distance in so short of time? It matters not, what matters is you are here now!" _

_ Galn freed himself from her embrace and looked at her with no love or affection in his eyes. "My dear lady, I see you're unsafe here, I've come all this way, but I cannot remember why. While I am here though, perhaps I should take you someplace safer."_

_ "Galn," The woman said quietly her voice heartbroken. "Say not such things! You must know who I am! Please tell me this is ill fitted humor, Galn my love do not say such things!" _

_ "Please calm yourself, let me take you away from this forsaken place."_

_ "Galn!" The woman's eyes filled with sobbing tears as she spoke. "If you cannot say my name I swear to Hyne I shall take my very life now, say my name my love!"_

_ "I wish I could my lady, but I do not believe we've met."_

_ Galn reached to comfort the woman, but before his hand even met she rushed away and ran. Galn followed her closely calling to her to halt. She stopped at the edge of a cliff and cried out once more, "Tell me you know my name Galn! Tell me you've no forgotten me!" _

_ "Please, do not act so irrationally!" He cried out desperately._

_ The woman shed her last tears and uttered softly, "I love you, Galn." With that, she allowed herself to fall down the heights of the cliff into the deep vast ocean beneath. Galn watched, breathless and appalled. _

_ "Your kind is a peculiar one." Sounded Gilgamesh as he appeared behind Galn. Galn looked to him confused. "You begged and pleaded for my help to reach that very woman, you claimed she was your reason to existence and now that you've found her you chose to forget who she was?"_

_ "Gilgamesh my friend, are you saying I knew that woman?" Galn gasped in absolute horror. _

_ "I am saying you are here and traveled across the world conquering all odds with my power to reach her in time, before she perished here in the desert. Now you have chased her to her doom. I feel as though you only wanted power, not the power to save her. I have promised to bring you here, and now I have done all that I promised. I leave you here now Galn, I now more than ever praise the creator he did not make me human like you."_

_ Gilgamesh disappeared into a puff of smoke leaving Galn to his remorse. A woman he claimed to love perished before his eyes and now he stood alone, abandoned in a desert, until it too took his life._

Selphie reached the end of the book shocked at the final statements. "What a bad ending!" She cried tossing it across the room. She crossed her arms angrily more glad than before the open man from her book wasn't the same man from her dream. At the same time, a hint of guilt pulled at Selphie for not knowing the cowboy's name. Whatever the case, Selphie looked to the book that at had flopped open to the first page landing with a small thud on the floor. Begrudgingly, Selphie went to fetch it, not wanting to leave it where it laid. She collected it and noticed bold letters different from the rest of the typing on the page.

"Property of Balamb Garden." She read aloud. _Balamb Garden? What's that? Didn't Mr. Devin give me this? He must've, I don't know where else I could gotten it… _ Selphie scanned the book more closely, still no other sign of where the book came from remained. Upset with the book and its ending Selphie came to her knees and tossed the book under her bed.

Along with the book thrust against the wall, Selphie noticed a small parcel also squeezed against the rim of the bed, hidden in the shadows. She crawled underneath the bed and reached until her hands could barely touch the cloth pouch. After enough fidgeting, the package finally came within her reach and she slid it out. Inside the small bag from under the bed was a set of unusual clothing. They were navy blue with intricate and ornate symbols that Selphie could not recognize.

How unusual, the book, the clothes and a list of words she'd never heard. Were these hers or did they previously belong to someone else? Perhaps they belonged to Devin? She carefully packed the clothes and placed the book with them back into the bag and returned under the bed. Whomever they belonged to, there must have been a reason they remain so deeply hidden under the bed.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''

Rinoa let herself into Irvine's dorm not surprised to see him in his usual state of lying flat on his back with a blank glance at the ceiling.

"Irvine?" She called in hesitantly.

"Here to bash me some more?" He responded flatly.

With a weak smile, Rinoa closed the door and took a seat on the edge of Irvine's bed. She patted his leg gently and tilted her head as she looked towards his face. "Irvine, I'm sorry I've been so mean and inconsiderate. I tried to be understanding, I just lost my patience. I'm just—"

Irvine slowly brought his head up facing Rinoa with a glance of annoyance.

"I'm just not used to you being like this Irvine. You've got to understand, look at your track record. Girls don't have this affect on you, it just seemed so hard to realize you were actually feeling this bad about one. I'm sorry I didn't take you as seriously Irvine."

Irvine's glance relaxed as he nodded. "Apology accepted Rin."

Accomplished with herself, Rinoa stood up happily. She clasped her hands together with a certain 'I-have-an-idea' look. "Why don't you come stay with me?" Irvine peered at her oddly. "Oh don't give me that look! It'll be like old times, plus with Selphie gone I've got a spare bed. Until I get a new roommate, why don't you come fill the silence?"

Although it didn't seem entirely therapeutics, Irvine did like the idea of being where he and Selphie spent most of their quality moments. "That sounds nice." He hopped off the bed. Rinoa immediately grasped at his arm and led him down the hall, walking side by side as if they were a couple. Just like the good old days before boyfriends and girlfriends.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Selphie woke up again in the brightly lit room with a view of green fields. She gazed around looking for any indication that she'd actually come to a different place. Instead, she heard Galn's familiar voice greeting her as he appeared out of nowhere.

"You're back!" He said cheerfully.

Nodding her head sweetly, Selphie replied, "I guess so, tee-hee." She came to her feet and walked over to Galn. "Sorry I left so quickly last time."

"Well you came back pretty quick." He smirked and leaned his head in as though to kiss her on the cheek again, "Missed me that much, eh?" Selphie blushed taking a step back shaking her head in disagreement. "Aw Selphie, we were meant to be!"

"Y-yeah right." Selphie laughed hesitantly.

"A sigh of love?" Galn returned teasingly.

"N-no, no of course not." She shook her head defiantly.

Galn laughed heartily and swept passed Selphie. "I dunno know, I feel— perhaps it's fate?" He sat himself against Selphie's bed and stretched out his long torso and arms. "Well don't be so shy. Sit down!"

"Galn—" Selphie began nervously.

"Still calling me that? Gee, thought you'd remember my name by now."

"Er, sorry." Selphie continued feeling ever more bashful. She timidly shifted her weight foot to foot looking around the rooms for clues of where they were. Finally, she decided to ask. "Hey, where are we anyways?"

"If you don't know, I'm not telling." Galn replied coolly. "Come on, sit down, let's talk."

Still unknowledgeable about Galn's character, Selphie couldn't deny she felt safe with him. She reluctantly took a seat, a safe distance from Galn, but still in a relaxed position.

"So you don't know where we are, huh? Well where do you live then?" Galn started.

"I live in Trabia, always have. Ever since I was born." Selphie replied quietly.

"Why not try some other place on for size?"

"No, no! I don't have any family or anything, that'd be so scary."

"No family? Seems all the more reason to start out someplace new!"

"But, I have Mr. Devin you see—"

"That an uncle or something?"

Selphie pressed a finger to her chin and pondered for a moment. "He's not related to me, but he's the closest person to a family member I have. He saved my a long time ago, and since then he's been so good to me. I don't think I could ever repay him."

"So you stay in Trabia for this Devin fellow?" Galn question, sincerely interested.

"Well, kind of… I mean I never tried leaving. I don't think Mr. Devin would like that."

"But he's not your family, he doesn't have a right to keep you anywhere. Go where ya want."

"I couldn't! I owe Mr. Devin my life! I couldn't do something like that!"

Galn gave Selphie a shifty glance before coming to his feet and pacing. "You know," he said pausing his paces, "he doesn't own you, no matter what you think. You should come here."

"Where is 'here'?" Selphie asked immediately.

"Well if you left Trabia, you'd find out."

"Mr. Devin just gave me this wonderful home. Just because he said my life was too hard before, and he's so generous, I couldn't just runaway."

Galn shrugged his shoulders weakly, defeated. "Well you're mind seems made up. Mr. Devin is pretty lucky that you're so loyal to him."

Selphie nodded her head and slid off the bed. As she did, her skirt raised up revealing part of her thigh.

"What is that!" Galn shouted.

Selphie gazed down at her thigh noticing a terrible scar. She inspected it carefully noticing its detail to an obvious purpose. "I-I don't know." Her lips quivered truly unaware of where the injury came from.

Galn too carefully looked at it before concluding, "Did that Mr. Devin fella do this? That's kind of sick!"

"No! He wouldn't have! Mr. Devin has never hurt me!" Selphie protested. _Well I mean not on purpose… _she side commented in her head referring to the occurrences when Devin and her are intimate.

Galn reached down, pulled Selphie's skirt back over her leg, and helped her back to her feet. His fingers brushed against Selphie's cheek wiping some forming tears away. "Don't worry about it none then. I bet it was some sort of— freak accident or something. I hope Mr. Devin didn't do it."

_Me too…_ Selphie thought in agreement.

"I'd never do anything to hurt you, Selphie. I'd protect you, so no one ever did that kind of thing to you again." Galn said with a bright smile. His grin felt so entrancing that Selphie had no hindrance believing his every word. Instead, she mimicked his facial gesture and stared longingly in his bright blue eyes. "I think you should come here Selphie, come where I am."

"But you're not real, Galn—" Selphie started, her voice breaking.

"Course' I'm real! I'm as real as they get." Galn leaned in until the bridges of their noses met. "Just gotta find me."

"Where?"

Instead of answering, Galn pressed his lips ever so gently against Selphie's. His hands, rested on Selphie's shoulders moved towards her back and brought her in closer. He handled Selphie gently, keeping his kiss tender and sweet. "Don't worry about it." He said with a whisper after pulling away.

Selphie stared at him in wonder as the room around her began to fade into white.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Selphie jerked her head up and looked around the room. As she predicted, she had returned back to Devin's cabin, and Galn was just a dream. She slowly put her hands to her lips remembering Galn's soothing gesture. She'd seldom been kissed in her life. If she did, it was most likely Mr. Devin. There were a few men from the fountain that snuck a quick kiss or two. Despite all of them, she'd never been kissed so tenderly and lovingly, even in her dreams.

_But Galn is just a dream_… Selphie sighed loudly. It seemed an awful shame that her imagination had conjured such an interesting man. She wanted to fall asleep immediately so that she might be able to see him again.

_Wait a minute, if it was just a dream then— _Selphie immediately threw her pants off and discovered the same scar from her dream on her upper thigh. Normally out of view unless she was looking straight at it, Selphie noticed the same detail from her dream. Almost afraid, her eyes widened as she slowly reached a finger towards it. The tip met the reddened scar, somewhat healed appearing. Her touch sent a burning sensation through her thigh.

_Where did this come from! W-was it really Mr. Devin? _Tears brimmed Selphie's eyes as she fought to keep them from falling. _It wasn't Mr. Devin, it couldn't be! He's always been good to me, no I did this to myself… that's what happened. _

Selphie put her pants back on and rested back on her bed, squeezing her eyes shut. She'd fall asleep and return to Galn's world and forget the scar existed. As far as she was concerned, it didn't exist at all.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

"Rinoa! Open the door!"

Rinoa appeared at her dorm's entrance, blinking wearily as her sleep had been disturbed. "What is it Zell?" She hissed groggily.

The cheerful blonde stood outside dressed in SeeD uniform with an excited smile on his face. His hair was newly trimmed moving away any locks that had begun to fall over his trademark facial tattoo. Although clashing with his attire, he'd equipped his finest fighting gloves on his hands. "Come on, let me in! Your baby here?"

"He's sleeping, as should I!" Rinoa responded bitterly as she begrudgingly held the door open for the hyperactive blonde to enter. "I don't think he wants to see anyone though, Zell. He's been here about a week and he hasn't done much but sleep. I wouldn't bother him."

Zell held a thumb up with a huge grin, "I got great news for him though!" He fisted his hand and banged loudly at the door that led to Selphie's former room. "Hey Kinneas! Wake up!" After receiving no reply, Zell shoved the door open letting himself in.

Irvine laid on the bed dressed down in his boxers, his hand clutching Selphie's necklace, although no one could see that. Using his elbows as advantage, he propped himself up and eyed Zell irritably. "What's up Zell?" He said with a loud yawn.

"You won't believe it man, we're getting assigned our first mission!" Zell clapped his fists together loudly.

"That's it?" Irvine replied flatly. Not waiting for a response, Irvine turned onto his side and yawned to indicate he was returning to slumber.

"Kinneas, listen! You're going to love this part. Guess where they're sending us! Trabia!"

Immediately, Irvine sat up alert. He watched Zell with interest waiting eagerly for him to reply.

"Isn't that great! It sounds super easy too! There's this really wealthy lady who's super paranoid about the Trabian crime rate so she's hiring SeeD to be her bodyguards. Come on! Get dressed we gotta go meet her! She's waiting in Headmaster Cid's office."

Irvine leapt to his feet and searched the room for clothes decent enough to exit in. He threw on some pants and decided to go without a shirt, too excited to get out and go. Zell led the way straight out the door, Irvine close behind. He glanced back at Rinoa who looked at him thoughtfully.

"Do you think you'll find—"

"I don't Rin, but I gotta try." Irvine said quickly too afraid to think of the negative possibility of the situation. With that, he closed the door behind him and raced to his dorm to quickly dress in his SeeD uniform. He ran a brush through his hair and yanked a tie around it. Lastly, he grabbed his black cowboy hat and placed it on his head. Before leaving the room, he glanced at his devilishly handsome face for inspection. Pleased with the overall look he hastened out of his dorm and made his way in lighting speed to the third floor.

In the main lobby of Headmaster Cid's office stood Zell along with all the other new SeeDs: Squall, Seifer, and Nida. The four of them stood around uncomfortably, appearing nervous. Well most of them nervous, Seifer just appeared annoyed, and Squall looked more bored than anything. Towards the back of the room sat a small group of other lads in SeeD uniforms that Irvine didn't recognize.

"Oh man!" Zell whispered excitedly. He stuck his head into the view of a window centered on the door to Headmaster Cid's office. "You won't believe who it is!"

"You won't believe how much we don't care." Seifer responded snappishly walking away to avoid hearing more on the subject.

Zell moved away from the door and came towards Squall and Irvine. "That's not just any wealthy broad in there, that's Sandrea Woods!"

Irvine and Squall exchanged confused glances.

"Should we know who that is?" Squall asked flatly.

"Come on guys! You don't know who Sandrea Woods is? Her husband is the owner and CEO of Woods Inc.! They've gotta be the richest people in the world! Seriously, how do you two not know who they are? Don't either of you read the business sections?"

Irvine proudly patted his chest, "Hey, hey, hey. Women and guns are my territory."

"Well lucky for you, Mr. Know-It-All Zell will fill you in!" Zell exclaimed happily.

"No time boys." Interrupted Xu, appearing from the doors of Headmaster Cid's office. It's time for you all to line up."

The other SeeDs from the back of the room joined them as the other five lined up in formation. After they all seemed set, Xu stuck her head back into the office and called out, "They're all ready sir!"

A moment later Headmaster Cid entered the room, appearing to be in the middle of a conversation. "Ah yes, Edea does enjoy those events. As a public figure I suppose it is important for her to go, I, of course never have time."

"Oh Cid, you should come! My husband and I would love to have you, and you really should meet him. I intend to host a ball while I'm in Trabia. I would be honored if you and Edea would join us. Together that is. I know Edea will come, but this time you should too."

After Zell's quick description of Sandrea Woods, Irvine expected to see a fat, wrinkled old geezer emerge from Headmaster Cid's office. What came out was a beautiful woman with platinum blonde hair tussled in large soft curls. Her face heavily made up with bright red lipstick and thick eyeliner. With careful inspection, one could see faded lines of age, but only after thoroughly looking for it. Sandrea was a slender woman wearing a long pearl sleeveless gown with a luxurious white fur shawl over her arms. She faced the line of SeeDs and smiled politely.

"These Mrs. Woods are some of Garden's finest. They'll be your body guards during your stay in Trabia."

"Cid please, call me Sandrea." Mrs. Woods said with a laugh gently patting Headmaster Cid's shoulder.

"Very well, Sandrea. Allow me to introduce them to you." Headmaster Cid came to the front of the line where two SeeDs that Irvine didn't know stood. "These young men are—"

"Soma, Tag. SeeD rank A." The first one stated.

"Alexston, Baros. SeeD rank 28." The second declared afterwards.

"Yes, Tag and Baros will be the captains on this mission. They will be responsible for the two shifts of SeeDs." Headmaster Cid explained, "They're both close combat fighters who will spend the most time around you." He moved on to the bulk of the group in the middle. "State your names please."

"Donner, Nida. SeeD rank 7."

"Almasy, Seifer. SeeD rank 9."

"Dintch, Zell. SeeD rank 8."

"Loire, Squall. SeeD 9."

"These gentlemen make up your surrounding support group; they'll be in charge of aiding their captains at however best you need to ensure your safety. Seifer and Squall here are both gunblade specialists, they're quite rare a find."

Sandrea nodded only semi interested and moved on forward to Irvine and the last SeeD that he didn't recognize. "And who are these fine gentlemen?" She asked, her voice rising in tone.

"These two men are your snipers. Irvine Kinneas rank 7 and Remus Leslie rank 19. Irvine here may be new to SeeD recruitment but he has outstanding marks. He's the best sniper in this and all Gardens. This lad here never misses his target!"

Sandrea smiled creasing her red lips not revealing her teeth. "Then I feel safer already." She met eyes with Irvine and bowed her head politely. After a fraction of a moment, she turned around, her back to the SeeDs. "Well then Cid, let us go sign the paperwork then. Tell your men to be packed up by this afternoon. We'll be leaving by vessel."

"Isn't taking a train faster Sandrea?" Headmaster Cid advised politely.

"Why Cid, the train is completely bourgeois. I travel in only the finest. The ship won't leave without me of course, but as it does carry other elite passengers, I'd best not keep it waiting."

The two disappeared back into Headmaster Cid's office, leaving the group of SeeDs to dispatch and go get their belongings for the trip. Xu came around the front to start explaining the details of the trip, including location and duration.

Irvine nudged Zell and whispered, "Hey was Sandrea checking me out?"

Zell raised his eyebrow crossly, "You mean when she smiled at us? You know just cause a woman makes eye contact with you, doesn't mean she's hitting on you. And show some respect man! That's Mrs. Woods to you! Now come on let's not mess around, we gotta go get packed."

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Every night the passed week Selphie had dreamt of Galn. Each dream felt more vivid and real than the last. Of course, nothing out of the ordinary even occurred. They both remained the small brightly lit room and talked. Before leaving of course, Galn would always kiss her goodbye sweetly as his first kiss and requested her to come and meet him.

Selphie always wanted to respond and explain how she couldn't or didn't know where to go, but the scene always faded by the time she could respond. Her ability to sleep began to weaken. She no longer could take naps and falling asleep at night had become challenging. As she was doing so physical exertion throughout the day and sleeping in every morning, she began to have no true need to sleep much.

All her dreams with Galn kept her so entertained, she almost felt upset when Mr. Devin finally visited her. Granted, he was the only real human contact she received, and as such, she got over it rather quickly.

Selphie gazed upwards at the ceiling breathing in deeply, her body sore from Devin's rough handling. She could hear the water running in the bathroom as Mr. Devin washed up. She turned her head and gazed out the window wondering if Galn truly existed. He always handled her gently, smoothly, and comfortably. She enjoyed being in Galn's embrace.

The bathroom door opened and Devin exited knotting his tie as he did. "Haven't fallen asleep on me again have you?" He called with a small chuckle.

Selphie weakly lifted herself and smiled, "No I'm awake."

"Very good, I needed to speak to you then." Devin said gesturing for Selphie to come closer as he took a seat at the table in the room. Selphie stood up, brushed off her clothing, and adjusted everything properly. After she looked slightly decent, she walked over to the table and sat herself down. "I won't be visiting for next several weeks." Devin said simply.

Blinking rapidly, Selphie opened her mouth. "B-but, where are you going?"

"I have to go out of town my dear. Naturally, I have business to attend to, I don't make a living sitting about and looking pretty. Don't fret, I'll be back before you notice I've been gone."

"But Mr. Devin—" Selphie started in a soft tone. Devin looked her in the eye with a rather nonchalant expression. "I-I miss you when you're gone."

"And I'll miss you too, my dear. But the work is work and that's all there is to be said of that. I bid you farewell my dear." Mr. Devin came to his feet and started towards the door.

While Selphie sat and thought of weeks on end without any human companionship, she grew saddened instantly. She thought of Galn, how he always claimed she just needed to come find him. "Mr. Devin!" She called out stopping him. She rushed before him and smiled endearingly. "While you're gone, do you think it'd be okay if I left the cabin? Not a lot just, just a tiny bit." Selphie pinched her fingers showing a small amount of empty space between them.

"Absolutely not. You've no need to leave this place." Devin replied frankly.

"I just thought—"

"It's not up for discussion, Selphie."

"But Mr. Devin—"

Selphie was cut short by swift hard slap across her face. The blow pushed her clean off her feet as she landed on the ground loudly. She slowly came to a sitting position, cupping her hand tightly as tears formed in her eyes.

"I said you are not to leave this cabin under any circumstance. If I discover you've walked out of this perimeter even a foot, you'll soon regret it. Do I make myself clear?" Still in shock to reply, Selphie gazed upwards, tears starting to stream down her face. "I didn't want to leave on such a harsh note, but you've rendered me helpless, Selphie. I'll take my leave now."

Devin walked swiftly passed Selphie and straight to the door, not offering to help Selphie up or comfort her in any way. When he reached the door he turned back and eyed Selphie with a forced smile, "I do hope I made myself clear, my dear." With that, he exited.

Selphie curled up in a ball and rested on her side. First, she'd discovered a scar, whose origin was unknown but signs led to Mr. Devin, then he'd struck her, hard. Why had he become so callous around her? What had she done? _Well… I was arguing with him_— Selphie thought sadly to herself as she watched her vision blur from tears and clear up as they fell from the corners of her eyes. She remained like this for a while, not moving so much as an inch until she finally fell asleep.

When Selphie opened her eyes again, she still retained her ball like position, however now lying on the floor of the brightly lit room of Galn's world. She sat up slowly rubbing the tears from her eyes as she looked around for Galn to make his appearance.

Selphie remained alone for several minutes. About to burst into tears again, Selphie noticed there was a door in the room that she never actually opened. She came to her feet hesitantly and even more slowly opened the door to the next room.

Inside the room sat three women. Each one was more beautiful than the next. Selphie's exposure to attractive women was rather limited to the women at the fountain, meaning she had little comparison. The first girl wore a shirt and skirt identical to the suit Selphie found under her bed, and the same suit Selphie found herself wearing whenever she conjured up this place. She had ebony black hair with just a few strands of copper framing her face. Beside her sat another lady with hair shining of gold, brilliant as the sun. She wore glasses and a much more ornate shirt and skirt. Standing nearby stood another woman whose beauty Selphie didn't believe she could have even imagined.

The woman wore solid black, but her face was as fair as snow. She had large dark eyes as mysterious as the night sky. Her long hair rested down her back reaching the tops of her legs, moving easily and shining in the light. She turned to Selphie and smiled so kindly, Selphie felt compelled to smile back.

"W-who are you all?" Selphie asked hesitantly. The women exchanged glances but remained silent. They looked back at Selphie and smiled hesitantly, as though they didn't know how to speak, or rather what to say.

"They're friends of mine." Sounded Galn from behind her. Selphie spun around enthused to hear Galn's voice. A wide grin spread across Selphie's face as her eyes lit up. She rushed into Galn's arms and hugged him tightly. "Whoa, hey. Is something wrong?"

"I just missed you." Selphie whispered.

"I missed ya too." Galn said with a small chuckle.

By the time, Selphie pulled away, tears had started to trail down her cheeks again. She rubbed her cheek with her sleeves and sniffled.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Selphie! You're cryin', what the heck happened?" Galn rested his hands on her shoulders and knelt down to keep eye contact with Selphie who'd begin to face her head downwards. "Selphie?"

"Mr. Devin—" Selphie started slowly between sniffles, "h-hit me."

Immediately, the three women came to the their feet and rushed over to Selphie. They patted her kindly and comfortingly, still silent but affectionate. Galn held her close to him and patted her head, holding her as if he did not intend to ever let go.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine scanned his room looking for any articles he'd forgotten. However, without Rinoa who'd been packing alongside him, he'd only successfully brought guns and ammunition.

"Do I got everything?" He asked panicked looking about madly.

"Well counting what you packed? No, you have absolutely nothing." Rinoa replied flatly as she neatly folded spare uniforms and placed them neatly into Irvine's bag.

Panicked, Irvine sat down, breathing deeply. He didn't speak, but sat there for several moments while Rinoa finished up his clothing and necessities. She looked at him sitting miserably at the corner of his bed.

"Irvine— are you going to be alright?"

Irvine breathed in deeply and sighed, "I-I don't know Rin. What if, what if there's no way to find her? I go all that way and I can't track her down. She's just one tiny girl. I don't even know where to begin."

Rinoa took a seat beside Irvine and took his hand into hers. "Irvine, listen to me." The cowboy slowly lifted his head to make eye contact. "If you were meant to find her, you will. I don't want to say this, but— please realize it might not happen. That's not why you're going to Trabia. You've got to keep that in mind."

Irvine's heart wrenched at Rinoa's words. As much as they stung, he knew in his heart they were the most true words. He couldn't expect to find Selphie, only hope to.

"I really hope you find her, but don't have expectations Irvine. I just don't want you coming back more miserable than now, and you will be if you keep thinking that finding her is a **must**." Rinoa leaned in and kissed Irvine gently on the cheek. She hugged him as best she could from a sitting position and came to her feet. "I'm going to go see Squall now, are you going to be okay?"

Irvine nodded, "I'll be fine." With a weak smile, Rinoa walked towards the door. "Hey Rinoa," she stopped right at the door, "you're right."

Rinoa left the room leaving Irvine more miserable than ever. Going to Trabia without even expectations of finding Selphie. His chest burned as he fell onto his back. He had a mission in Trabia, and unfortunately,… it wasn't to find Selphie.

The group of SeeDs departing gathered at the front gates where a van was ready to take them to Balamb. Wishing final farewells were other students and SeeDs, including Amy and Rinoa. Instructor Trepe even came to congratulate all the new SeeDs who were on their first mission. She saluted the men and shook both Squall's and Seifer's hands, Seifer last and for a little longer than Squall.

The ride to Balamb went soundlessly for Irvine. He gazed out the window lost and unenthused. Most of the other SeeDs rowdily spoke about how excited they were to leave Garden, or travel on Mrs. Wood's vessel. Irvine could hear Zell in the background trying to explain the Wood's fortune, but few of the SeeDs cared.

Upon arriving to the harbor in Balamb, the seniors, Baros and Tag, bragged about their previous endeavors. They high-fived in cheer think about the great perks they'd already experienced. The sniper with them was relatively quiet.

After finally arriving, even the seniors closed their mouths in awe. Although Zell mentioned Sandrea Woods a wealthy lady, no one imagined just how wealthy. A top of the line luxury ship stood before them taking up most of the Balamb harbor. While the group of SeeDs stared in wonder at the amazing vessel, Sandrea Woods appeared, as fancily dressed as before with a line of bellhops.

"Hello there gentlemen, I see you've recognized the Woods Inc.'s latest addition. I naturally wanted to be on its first voyage, I came here by it from Esthar. Impressive isn't it?" Sandrea smiled pushing her long shining curls aside. "Now then, as my bodyguards you all are to remain in proximity of me at all times. Therefore your cabins shall all be in the same hall as mine, and you are to only stay in first class areas."

Sandrea may have sounded restricting and stern, but her orders were hard to say no to. She clapped her hands and the bellhops behind her immediately collected the SeeD's belongings. "You all will be sharing rooms with one another, choose whomever you like, and a bellhop will show you were you're staying."

Irvine followed the group of SeeDs and bellhops into the ship. Several well-dressed people from different places across the world toured the nearby shops, gazed off the deck of the ship, and made passage back onto the ship. After crossing through corridors and corridors of ornately decorated passages of the ship, the bellhops stopped at a hall.

"Mrs. Woods' suite is at the end of the hall. You all will have your rooms here. Choose whichever bunkmate and tell us when you're ready."

Still in a daze about all that had occurred, Irvine hardly noticed Zell grabbing his arm and yanking him back into reality. "Come on man, you wanna bunk with me or not?"

Irvine blinked finally realizing what was happening. "You want to bunk with me?" He repeated curiously.

"Yeah, the new SeeDs are total jackasses and I really don't want to end up with Seifer."

Just as it had been mentioned, Seifer the intimidator walked over to them, his eyes cross and stern. He pointed towards them and whistled, "Sniper slut, chicken wuss. One of you are going to be my roommate."

"Freakin' hell—" Zell muttered under his breath.

Irvine patted Zell's shoulder, "Sorry, but can't. We're already bunkin' with each other."

Seifer sneered, "Fine, have it your way." He turned around and grabbed the other sniper, Remus, by the shoulder aggressively. "You'll do." The sniper squirmed a bit trying to break Seifer's strong grip.

"H-hey! I'm higher rank than you, let go of me!"  
"Did you just say 'higher rank'? We'll see about that. Come on Sniper 2."  
"I've got a name!"  
"I don't care. Just stay out of my way and away from my bed." Seifer yanked the SeeD out of view following a pair of bellhops.

Whew, we dodged a bullet." Irvine sighed relieved. Zell nodded in agreement. "Wonder who Squall's gonna bunk with now." The two shrugged nonchalantly; rather just relishing they weren't Seifer's roommate as they were ushered into their own room. "OOOH YEAH!" Zell exclaimed leaping high into the air.

Irvine completely understood Zell's excitement. The room was as grand as everything leading up to it. Two large beds stuffed with comfortable pillows stood, spaciously apart. The room was furnished with its own bathroom grand as a king's. Zell trotted off to his bed. "Man this is so cool! It pays to be SeeD!"

Excitedly, Irvine threw himself on his bed enjoying its comfortable buoyancy. He smiled feeling the incredibly silky material under him. "It sure does." He propped himself up and noticed Zell at the door. "Where ya going?" He asked.

"Didn't you hear Mrs. Woods? We get to cruise the whole 1st class! That's VIP lounges, private pools and saunas, great restaurants, the best lido deck. Come on Kinneas! This may be the only time in our life we get to hang out in this kind of luxury! We're wasting our time in here!"

Zell's argument was as compelling as Sandrea's orders. Without a word of objection, Irvine came to his feet and followed Zell out. They traveled immediately to the 1st class lounge. Upon entering, a waitress came up to them and greeted them pleasantly.

"Welcome to the Grand Lounge Oceania. You two are Mrs. Woods' private guests I assume?"  
"We're her bodyguards." Zell corrected proudly.  
"Of course, my mistake. Allow me to take you to a table, unless you would rather sit at the bar. As Mrs. Woods ordered, everything is on the house."  
"It doesn't get any better than this! Your finest table, miss!" Zell rubbed his hands together excitedly.

Irvine shrugged, "I'll just sit at the bar."

"Are you kidding me Kinneas? You can't even drink." Zell muttered quietly.

"I'll meet up with you later, save me a seat."

Zell followed the waitress and Irvine continued himself to the elegant bar with its shining collection of assorted bottles in different colors, shapes and sizes. He took a seat quietly.

"What can I do for you?" The barkeeper said almost instantly appearing right before him.

Irvine opened his mouth to reply but immediately behind him he heard a reply in a familiar voice. "A Sylkis, extra sweet, neat." Irvine turned around to see Sandrea Woods approaching the bar. She took the seat right beside him, smiling at him as she did.

"Coming right up, Mrs. Woods. Anything for your guest?"

Sandrea took a careful glance at Irvine. She pursed her lips in thought for a moment before saying. "A Mimmet for this one." Irvine was about to protest, but as the drinks arrived almost quickly as the orders taken, it seemed almost rude to push aside an offering from his new employer. Sandrea picked up her drink, a dark burgundy mixture in a twisted crystal glass. She eyed Irvine curiously. "Well are you waiting for an order to drink as well?"

Irvine rubbed his neck and held his firm glass with a lime green translucent liquid. He'd never tried a drink as strong as a Mimmet. He'd only tried things as simple as beer in the past. He held it to his lips and took in a good amount, savoring the flavor as it poured down his throat.

"Which one were you again?" Sandrea asked twiddling with the rim of her glass between sips.

"Kinneas, ma'am. Irvine Kinneas rank 9." Irvine replied confidently.  
"I don't actually know or care what ranks are." Sandrea said holding her Sylkis to her lips.  
"It's how good of a SeeD you are. If you've been in for a while you're rank is higher usually from experience, a good SeeD rises ranks pretty fast."  
"So you're telling me Cid handed me a handful of amateurs to protect me?" Sandrea raised her eyebrow almost angrily.

Irvine shook his head. "Course' not. It's tough to make SeeD, and it takes a while to rank up. But you got a great bunch. Headmaster Cid wasn't lying about us, what we lack in experience we make up in skill." Irvine smiled and winked.

Sandrea shrugged, "I suppose we'll just have to see." She grinned and placed her drink down. "So Irvine was it? What weapon do you use again?"

"I'm a sniper ma'am."

"Ugh, stop calling me that." Sandrea scoffed irritably. "For now, just call me Sandrea." She patted his arm gently. "Can you manage that?" Sandrea kept her arm just where it was.

"Course' ma— Sandrea."

She smiled thinly and softly, almost unnoticeably stroked Irvine's arm. "I have to say, you all look so fascinating in your uniforms. Young men in arms, it's quite a treat to have as bodyguards. What made you want to become a— a SeeD, it's called?"

Irvine knew that Sandrea hadn't moved her arm. He took another drink of his Mimmet and decided to ignore it. He didn't want to offend Mrs. Woods. He smiled politely. "It's an honor to be a SeeD, maybe it is the uniform that makes everyone excited about joining. I was in Garden since I was a kid. It's all I remember wanting to be. My parents were both apart of the war effort."

"Interesting, born and raised in Balamb. I must confess, I was more interested in hearing why you wear a cowboy's hat on your head with your uniform than your origins." Sandrea laughed and slid her hand to rest on top of Irvine's. She took in a drink of her Sylkis.

"Actually, I'm Galbadian. I moved to Balamb with a friend of mine. And as for the hat, well let's say it's my secret." Irvine winked playfully tipping his hat.

"I do love a good secret," Sandrea uttered so quietly Irvine barely managed to hear her. "They make life that more interesting."

Irvine felt caught in Sandrea's eyes. They glimmered in the light and almost flirted with him. A part of him felt guilty for enjoying himself, another wrong for being with his boss so casually, but more than everything he felt great being in the attention of a beautiful woman. For once after weeks of sorrow, he felt back in his element.

"They are interesting." Irvine replied slyly.

"It's interesting only if there is one other person in on it. The chase is half the fun, but I look forward to finding out your secret, Irvine." Sandrea slipped her hand off of his and walked away from the bar leaving a generous amount of gil behind as a tip.

After Sandrea disappeared into the crowd of elite guests dressed in silks and other expensive materials, Zell appeared wearing a face of incredible shock.

Irvine turned around and waved over to his friend. "Hey man, come on sit down."

"No thanks." Zell replied coldly turning around sharply. Irvine leapt off his seat and rushed after him grabbing his shoulder to slow him down.

"What the heck? Are you mad at me cause' I didn't join you for dinner?" Irvine teased playfully with a small pat against Zell's shoulder. He jested and put his hands together, "Aw forgive me."

Zell stared bitterly at Irvine's teasing sarcasm. He gritted his teeth and muttered quietly. "Is everything a joke to you Kinneas? I mean everything? Were you seriously just hitting on our boss?"

Irvine blinked in surprise. "Zell— I mean, she started it!"

"Yeah sure, Sandrea Woods hit on you. I told you just because a woman is looking or talking to you, doesn't mean she wants you to bang her. And what the hell is your problem, I thought you were all mopey about Selphie. You seem totally over her now that some other lady is around. Man that is sick Irvine. She's your boss Kinneas. Stop."

Zell began to walk away again Irvine grabbed his shoulder, rougher this time. "Zell listen to me, Sandrea was hitting on me. Okay fine maybe she wasn't, but I wasn't doing anything wrong. I was just talking, having some fun. AND just because I'm not lying in bed miserably doesn't mean I'm over Selphie! If I'm lying in bed I'm pathetic because I'm hung up over a girl and if I'm out there enjoying myself I'm an ass? The heck do you guys want?"

"It's Mrs. Woods, Kinneas. Have some damn respect." Zell coolly passed, letting his shoulder knock Irvine's arm rudely as he did.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

"He hit you?" Galn repeated tensely. Selphie rubbed her cheeks dry and sniffled quietly. She waited for her tears to stop as she inhaled deeply trying to control her weeping voice.

"It wasn't too bad, I just never thought Mr. Devin would do that."

"I'm going to kill him!"

"No, no!" Selphie nearly started to cry again, she frantically held Galn's arms and shook her head. "You can't do that! Mr. Devin didn't mean to hurt me. He just wanted me to understand what he was saying." She continued to shake her head, slowing down as she spoke. "I'm sure that's all."

"Selphie, that's no reason to hit someone. Especially a girl who's not trying to fight him!" Galn inspected her cheek, stroking it incredibly softly. "Does it hurt still?" His eyes softened, full of anguish, almost as upset as Selphie.

Selphie smiled, "No, it's okay now."

Galn put an arm around Selphie and led her back into the small bedroom leaving the three mysterious pretty women alone. He closed the door behind him and sat Selphie down. "It's okay Selphie, you can tell me if it hurts."

Carefully touching the cheek that Devin had struck, Selphie grinned. "Really, I'm okay. I'm okay now that I'm here with you."

"Then stay here with me." Galn said softly smiling gently in response. "I'd never hurt you, no matter what. I'll keep you safe. Stay here Selphie, I don't want anything to happen to you."

No answer sufficient came to Selphie's mind. She didn't know what she wanted. She did have a wonderful home in Trabia, but after all, it felt so terribly lonesome she felt like sleeping at all hours of the day so she could see Galn. However, the problem remained that Galn was not real. The entire world around them was a dream. Mr. Devin and her life in Trabia was her reality.

"I want to, but I don't know how." She whispered, almost ashamed of her true wish.

"Just stay here, that's all it takes." Galn leaned his head closer speaking softly into her ear. He put his arms around her carefully embracing her. "Don't leave, just stay with me." They laid down, Selphie still tucked comfortably in Galn's arms.

Selphie looked into Galn's eyes sadly, "I don't understand, Galn are you in the real world somewhere?"

Galn closed his eyes and pressed his lips softly against Selphie. His arms snuggled around her a bit more as he placed a bit more pressure against her lips. Selphie finally returned the embrace relishing Galn's kiss.

Before she even understood it, she'd woken up, back into the lonely life of Trabia. She gazed around the empty room. Never in her life had she felt so miserable to be alone. Mr. Devin gone and Galn back in his own imaginary world. Selphie placed a hand on her cheek, it still felt warm from its injury.

She slowly came to her feet and looked out the window. Maybe Galn did exist in the world somewhere. He claimed they met before. _I can't go out there though… Mr Devin—_

An idea struck her mind. Mr. Devin forbade her from leaving the house physically, but he couldn't stop her from visiting Galn during her sleep. A smile spread across Selphie's face. She would simply sleep forever! She would stop her meals and force herself to do nothing but sleep, that way she'd never be lonely, she'd never be hurt, and she'd be with Galn!

_Mr. Devin said he'd be gone for weeks._ In a matter of weeks, Selphie could've placed herself in such a deep sleep, she'd never wake, even from Mr. Devin's voice. She looked around her home taking in a long glance at her comfortable, lonesome life. She would miss her home, and Mr. Devin, but it was better this way.

Mr. Devin would never get angry with her, and he would no longer need to take care of her. She'd live in Galn's world, no one would hurt her there. Selphie sat herself on the bed, her whole body too anxious to sleep. She could feel her heart racing at the thought of seeing Galn again.

_Goodbye Mr. Devin_. Selphie squeezed her eyes shut, lying still for hours counting the minutes until she fell asleep again.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

After the interlude with Sandrea at the bar, Irvine and Zell returned to their cabin silently, not sharing a word. Back at their room, Zell read business magazines talking about the Woods Inc., Irvine picked up a magazine and pretended to read.

Irvine couldn't concentrate on anything. His mind kept switching from topic to topic. He thought about Selphie and the possibility of bumping into her. He imagined every possible scenario of how their meeting would be. But as soon as the painful remembrance of the fact he may not find her returned, Irvine thought of his encounter with Sandrea to cheer him up.

Zell didn't believe him, but Irvine had far too many encounters with women interested and not interested to know what flirting looked, felt, and sounded like. Sandrea had been flirting with him.

"In other news, the premiere couple of the business world, still happily married, the Woods, are throwing a ball at their home in Trabia." Zell read loudly and abruptly.

Irvine heard the words loud and clear, but it only confused him. He knew women, and that was something no one could prove him wrong about.

"Oh bodyguards!" Sandrea's voice called from the hall.

Zell and Irvine jumped to their feet immediately and rushed out the door, along with every other SeeD who'd lined up in formation before Sandrea. They stood together and saluted promptly. Sandrea paced leisurely before them as though cat-walking her evening attire. Her large platinum blonde curls were wrapped together in a bun on top of her head with only a few thick locks framing her face. A long black ankle length gown draped her slender body as glimmering silver earrings dangled from her ears.

"How lovely, you're all here. I was worried I wouldn't be able to find you." She smiled politely looking down the row of SeeDs. "Anyways I called you out here to tell you I'm going now for dinner, and I detest eating alone. If I do, some rather annoying passenger, no doubt an associate of my husband's, always comes up to forces pleasantries with me. I know it's not polite to ignore them, but they are awfully dull. Therefore I want one of you to escort me to dinner."

Zell nudged Irvine roughly. "If she really likes you, maybe she'll take you to dinner, Kinneas." Even though Zell was joking, Irvine expected it to happen.

"Ma'am," One of the squad captains stepped out of the line and put a hand to his chest. "As captains of your regiment, Baros and I will be happy to take you to dinner."

Sandrea looked at the two SeeDs unimpressed and shrugged her shoulders. "I suppose you'll do then." She began to walk down the hall, stopping in front of Irvine. "You— what did you say your name was? Irvine I believe, you join as well."

Irvine smirked, almost feeling Zell's anger hot on his back. He nodded his head and tipped his hat. "As you wish." He took a step forward before glancing back at Zell's bitter look. "You know, Zell here is a huge fan of yours miss, and he knows everything about ya."

Sandrea paused and glanced at Zell. A smile touched her lips as she nodded, "How can I deny someone who adores me? You may come along as well then, Zell." She turned to the rest of the line and waved her hand, "the rest of you are dismissed for the night. Remember stay in the 1st class areas only."

While Baros and Tag walked along side of Mrs. Woods, Irvine and Zell lingered in the back. Although Zell wanted to be frustrated with Irvine for the fact his point in argument completely failed, his excitement to have dinner with Sandrea Woods took a greater affect.

"I can't believe this! I'm going to have dinner with Sandrea Woods! I can't wait to tell my Ma and Pa!" Zell rubbed his hands together joyously. He looked over to Irvine to see his sly smirk. "Okay fine, she invited you to dinner. Did you think maybe it's just cause she likes the attention?"

"Sure, but you can't say that I was totally off face then. She was flirting with me." Irvine replied coolly.

"Whatever man, just keep it to yourself. She's still your boss after all."

For dinner, the five of them sat at the best table at the ship's finest restaurant. Baros and Tag sat beside Mrs. Woods, Zell and Irvine across from her. Despite the fact there were four SeeDs, Zell appeared to be the only one making conversation. He asked everything about Sandrea, how she met her husband, how she contributes to the company and so forth.

Thrilled to have someone so interested in her, Sandrea filled the night's silence with stories of her life. She painted pictures in their minds about her many travels, her important PR work for the company, her responsibilities and her start up. Baros and Tag only feigned interest, Zell was deeply enraptured, and Irvine didn't pay attention to a word.

His mind kept drifting off to Selphie. He could hear bits and pieces of Sandrea's stories but he only envisioned Selphie through it all. Memories of their time together floated in his mind as the devastating image of the night he took Selphie from Trabia came along as well. Irvine's stomach twisted and his face looked pained as he remembered her bruised and inflamed body. _What if something like that happened again? Is she alive still? Is she okay? _

Irvine came to his feet and looked away disdained. "I'm sorry miss, I'm just going to head off to bed now."

"Why Irvine, you've barely touched your dinner." Sandrea replied softly. She came to her feet at joined Irvine at his side. "You know I'm quite tired myself, walk me to my room please." She looked back at the table politely and said to the rest of the SeeDs, "Please gentlemen stay and finish your meals. Enjoy yourself, my treat of course." Lacing her arm around Irvine's, she said quietly, "Shall we go?"

The two walked down the halls in silence. Irvine didn't take much notice to Sandrea, despite her holding onto his arm. They arrived in front of Sandrea's door without so much as word shared between them. "Goodnight ma'— I mean Sandrea."

"I appreciate you not calling me that in front of your comrades, I feel they might get the wrong idea." Sandrea said letting go of the cowboy's arm. Irvine nodded, not really taking in the message. He bowed his head and turned to head to his room. "Irvine, before you go,"

Irvine stopped and faced Sandrea.

"I must say, you look so sad. Is there something wrong?" Sandrea patted Irvine's arm comfortingly. "It's upsetting to see such a handsome face so pained. After all you were so joyful this afternoon."

"I'm just tired; I think I'm just going to head off to bed. Thanks for dinner, it was great." Irvine turned to leave again.

"I've not seen your rooms; I wonder how they compare to mine." Sandrea said halting Irvine again. She leisurely stepped towards him walking alongside until they reached his room. Without invitation, Sandrea opened the door and let herself in. "Why it's actually quite nice in here." She observed in a shocked tone.

"Yeah, it's great. Zell and I really like it."

"Oh Zell is your roommate." Sandrea continued softly, "He's still at dinner of course."

Irvine rubbed the back of his neck unsure if what to say. "Is there something I can help you with?"

"Perhaps," Sandrea drifted off quietly. She paced the room and sat herself on the bed. "Quite soft, very comfortable." Standing back up, she gazed over to Irvine and smiled. "I suppose I should be on my way then."

She passed by swiftly and reached the doorway. "Do you know what my favorite part of traveling is, Irvine?" Before Irvine could actually answer, Sandrea had swooped before him, "It's the mystery and adventure of it all." She rested her hand midway up Irvine's arm. "It's why I can't seem to stop traveling." Sandrea leaned in, placing her other hand on Irvine's chest. She stood up straight, reached her head upwards, and just barely touched Irvine's lips with her own.

As Sandrea pulled away slowly she gazed upon Irvine's face, still miserable and sad looking. She squinted her eyes slightly and pursed her lips together. "That's not the reaction I was expecting."

Irvine blinked at met Sandrea's gaze. "Sorry— I just, aren't you married?" He mumbled.

Sandrea smiled leaning in again. "Oh Irvine, what's one little secret between you and me? It's mystery," she kissed him delicately again, "and now history."

When Sandrea and Irvine met lips for a third time, Irvine felt like he was under a spell. Perhaps it was his mind ready to give up misery and look for some enjoyment, even if temporary. He wrapped his arms around Sandrea and held her close intensifying their kiss.

Sandrea ran her long fingers through his hair dropping his hat onto the floor. She pressed herself against tilting her head as their kiss deepened. Irvine gripped Sandrea's slender bodice feeling the soft material of her dress between his fingers. He slid up to her neckline tracing the edge of her bare skin.

Irvine, trying hard once more to resist, broke away the kiss and looked at Sandrea in the eye. He took in a deep breath watching Sandrea look back at him, confident he'd do exactly as she wanted. Her gaze seemed condescending almost, as if she was toying with him. Hesitantly, Irvine began to loosen his grip.

Sensing Irvine's reluctance, Sandrea placed a hand behind Irvine's neck and pressed her lips against his again. Irvine's grip stayed frozen for a moment before his hands slid down comfortably. Pleased with herself, Sandrea ended the kiss and released herself from Irvine's hold. A wry smile touched her now pink lips as she stepped backwards towards Irvine's bed.

A pounding sounded in Irvine's head. Adrenalin ran throughout his body while his mind screamed words he didn't understand or hear. He stepped towards Sandrea, his heart racing with excitement. This was who he was. Irvine Kinneas didn't curl up in a corner and mourn the loss of a heart. He conquered hearts, not lose them. Irvine took Sandrea back into his arms and kissed her neck. He could feel her breath on his ears as she giggled happily.

The familiar creaking of door opening sounded reaching both Irvine's and Sandrea's ears. Immediately they tore away from each other and turned to the door seeing Zell enter. Upon seeing them, Zell stepped back appalled. "Mrs. Woods—" He started, unable to finish his thought.

"Zell, it was so nice to have you at dinner. I was just telling Irvine here that." Sandrea glanced over at Zell and smiled brightly. "In fact, I was letting him know that I wanted both of you to join me for breakfast as well." She turned back to Irvine and eyed him deeply, as if trying to speak with her eyes. "Goodnight gentlemen."

Sandrea swept passed Irvine and Zell soundlessly leaving. Zell remained at the doorway, wide-eyed and speechless. Unsure of what to say or expect, Irvine slowly faced Zell breathing in slowly and catching his breath.

"What—the—hell." Zell finally pulled out of his lips. He shut the door behind him loudly and stared at Irvine darkly.

Irvine raised his hands up defensively. "Hey I can explain." He rubbed the back of his neck nervously, "Okay fine I really can't." Irvine hung his head, licking his lips in searching them desperately for something to save his case. "Zell you gotta believe me, I'm not even asking for this." He looked up surprised to see Zell wasn't hurling a fist towards him, rather just standing a few feet before him with the same dark glare in his eyes.

"The old Irvine Kinneas is back then. In bed with one girl one night, another girl another night. Can't believe I thought you actually changed with Selphie. You're the same dirty cowboy as you always have been." Zell trotted over to his bed and threw himself onto it. "You're sick Kinneas. You're going to get yourself and all of us in trouble now too. I think I miss the blubbering guy who was stuck on the bed."

"Zell, just listen to me. I am different, I swear I didn't start this!" Irvine exclaimed desperately.

Zell remained silent, his back to Irvine. Although Irvine kept saying the same words, in his heart he felt as lowly as Zell described him. _What's wrong with me? _He sat on the edge of his own bed and stared at the ground miserably. He'd made out with his married boss, despite his strong and engulfing residual feelings for Selphie. The worst part of it all remained that he didn't want to fight the desire to go see Sandrea and finish what they started.

Perhaps he'd judge himself later, maybe it wouldn't even matter. Irvine came to his feet and left the room sharing no more words with Zell. He walked soundlessly to the end of the hall and stopped in front of Sandrea's door.

He breathed in deeply, contemplating if he truly wanted to do this. Without even conscious control, he knocked at the door. A moment later, it opened revealing Sandrea behind it in a long silky nightdress, her hair released from its bun.

"I'm glad you understood the message." She greeted softly holding the door open for Irvine to enter. Irvine stared in hesitantly before he walked in. He felt ashamed and terrible, but for some reason when the door behind him shut, he could no longer even control the guilt within.

Sandrea leapt into his arms and Irvine immediately led them to the bed. He reached his hands to pull her nightdress over her legs revealing her torso. Sandrea replied with as much force and vigor unbuckling Irvine's uniform overcoat and slipping his undershirt over his head. She glided her hands over his bare abdomen and kissed his neck roughly.

"No cowboy hat?" Sandrea pulled away and pressed Irvine against the bed so that she sat right on top of him She released a small chuckle, pushing her curls away from her face. Irvine met her gaze and smiled slyly.

"I don't share my secrets that easily."

Sandrea slid her hand up Irvine's chest slowly as she leaned down letting her chest lay against Irvine's. "Is that so? I bet I can get you to reveal anything to me."

"Blackmail?" Irvine asked flatly.

A laugh escaped Sandrea's lips. She smiled and reached up to kiss Irvine's lips again. "Of course not, I had a much more interesting way of going about it." She slid her hands up into Irvine's hair scratching his scalp gently. "I was going to—" She kissed his neck, "send you—" kissed his ear, "into—" she kissed him deeply on the lips, "the greatest sense of ecstasy."

"We'll see if that works." Irvine replied confidently. He grasped Sandrea tightly and kissed her sitting up as she worked her hands easily to his waist unbuckling his pants.

Irvine knew there was no secret. He knew he was a shallow cowboy with an even more shallow heart. He enjoyed sex and women's company, but only as a pastime. He sometimes had a moral compass about it, but usually not. He enjoyed his lifestyle— he loved it. The only thing he ever loved more than his lifestyle was a sweet and endearing girl whom he accepted he may never see again.

"_I really hope you find her, but don't have expectations Irvine. I just don't want you coming back more miserable than now, and you will be if you keep thinking that finding her is a __**must**__." _Rinoa's words faded out as Irvine looked at Sandrea. He may never find Selphie, but he did have moments like these he could enjoy to ease the pain.

As well kept and youthful looking as Sandrea appeared, she grew tired easily and fell asleep as soon as her and Irvine finished. Irvine scooted off her bed and looked around the enormous suite. He exhaled deeply and looked back at Sandrea who slept peacefully, relaxed and content.

He didn't claim to understand Sandrea, perhaps she did just like male attention, and after all he was giving her plenty. He came to his feet and searched for his clothing. Slipping it on he gazed once more at Sandrea sleeping peacefully. Irvine didn't know how much he would regret everything he'd just done, but hopefully his guilt would be all that came from it. He stuffed his arms through his uniform overcoat and let himself out of the room.

When Irvine entered his own room, nothing had changed since he'd left. Zell remained in the same exact position Irvine left him in earlier. "Zell?" He called quietly. When the blonde gave no response, Irvine groaned loudly and sat himself on his bed. "Zell you're right. I'm just a sick guy. I couldn't control my feelings for Selphie, I couldn't even control my feelings for Sandrea. She gave me an opening and I took it! I didn't try to push her away." He looked at Zell's back, noticing he still hadn't shifted. "I don't know if I even want to find Selphie now," he continued quietly, "I'm pretty ashamed of myself right now. Would she— would she even want to be with a scoundrel like me?"

Irvine lay on his bed and stared at the ceiling sadly. "I miss Selphie, I'd do anything if I could find her. I'm not going to, I know that. I just wish—" His fists clenched tightly, "I wish I wasn't so weak willed, I wish I hadn't just had sex with Sandrea, I wish I had more control, I wish I was with Selphie. I always wanted to be with Selphie. If I never look at another girl again I'll be happy if she was still here."

Turning his head, Irvine looked at Zell's ever still back. "You don't care though, you got me pinned as the nymphomaniac I am. That's fine, I deserve that." He shifted trying to make himself comfortable on the bed. "That's what I am after all."

The next morning came soon enough. When Irvine woke up, Zell had already left the room. Irvine showered and dressed quickly hoping he wasn't late for breakfast. He found Sandrea and Zell already at the lounge deep in conversation.

"Oh good morning Irvine, sleep in did you?" Sandrea said with a graceful laugh.

Irvine sat down, feeling Zell glaring at him judgingly as he did. "Sorry Mrs. Woods."

"It's no bother, Zell has been keeping me company enough."

Zell smiled and came to his feet. "If you don't mind Mrs. Woods, now that Irvine's here I think I'll leave you with him." He bowed his head respectfully and left.

Sandrea watched him leave from the café before turning to Irvine with her normal elegant smile upon her colored red lips. The morning light was cruel to Sandrea, as its brightness revealed lines of age. Of course, she still appeared a vision to most, Irvine did start to notice her maturity.

"I'm actually glad he decided to leave." Sandrea started suddenly after several moments of silence passed. She turned to Irvine, eying him flirtatiously, "I believe we needed to talk."

Irvine stretched his arms before resting them behind his head as he leaned back comfortably in his chair. "Eh, Zell's more of a talker. I like to think of myself as a man of action personally." He sat up straight and met Sandrea's gaze, "Well Ms. Sandrea, what do we need to talk about?"

"It's just that." Sandrea replied quietly. She looked from side to side casually making sure no one listened in on her conversation. "We'll be in Trabia by tonight, I just needed to let you know, we're not to continue our— shall we casual relationship once we're there."

"Embarrassed of me?" Irvine teased.

"I'm not joking Irvine, I need to know that none of what happened on this vessel will be breathed to anyone. Further more, you are to call me Mrs. Woods as the rest of your comrades do."

Irvine observed Sandrea's sober face. Her eyes were stern with resolve and her lips straight no longer smiling. He nodded reluctantly, "Yes Mrs. Woods, I'm your hired bodyguard, and that's all."

Sandrea smiled again and sat back relaxed, "Wonderful. I do hope you realize what I can do if you choose not to uphold your end of the bargain."

Zell's words of warning echoed through Irvine's mind. He nodded slowly imagining what horrors Sandrea would cause for him and Balamb if he tried to publicize Sandrea and his short lived relationship.

"Well, now that is taken care of, we do still have the rest of the trip to enjoy ourselves. Why don't we? Sandrea held out her arm to Irvine, "Be my escort for the day Irvine, and relish these last few hours you may call me Sandrea."

Irvine looked at her arm and back into her eyes. A part of him wanted to reject Sandrea now that she'd set up walls and threats against him, however he'd already morally hit rock bottom. Now if he didn't follow up his crime, he'd only land himself in trouble. Keeping Sandrea happy with him was the only way to ensure he'd remain happy.

"Of course, Sandrea." He carefully let Sandrea loop her arm with his as they both sat up. Irvine moved easily, letting Sandrea lead him out of the café.

''''''''''''''''''''''''

Selphie had only gone a full 24 hours with her new starvation fast, but it already made effects. Selphie's hunger had wrenched a terrible pain inside her small little body, but determined as ever, she ignored the pains pacifying herself to sleep.

Soon she'd be with Galn forever, away from her sad little prison, away from any cruelties this world had to offer. She just had to be patient. Her eyes drooped slowly as she fought the twisted spasms of her hungry stomach. Selphie felt dizzy and weak. Her hands shook slightly as her side.

Unable to take it Selphie rolled out of the bed and crawled over to the kitchen. She grasped the first food item on the counter, an apple and bit into it. Partly through with it, she passed out on the kitchen floor.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Pleased that the conversation went so smoothly, Sandrea smiled her red lips and held out her arm to Irvine, "Well then, as it is our last day, let's enjoy it." Irvine looked at her bare arm held before him hesitantly. Although he'd already crossed all the lines, he felt guilty for traveling down the exact same path. He slowly linked his arm with Sandrea's as she led the way out of the café.

For the day Sandrea talked on and on about her wonderful life. It sounded similar to speech she narrated to Zell the night before, but as Irvine only barely listened to that speech as well, he couldn't be sure. They were occasionally interrupted by random people who knew Sandrea through business relationships. After meeting just sonorous pair, Irvine learned why Sandrea preferred her hired bodyguard's as company versus them.

As the sun began to hung low, Sandrea stopped at the bow of the boat and sighed. "I suppose we'll be there soon. It's getting quite cool." She said quietly. "It's best that you go on and pack your things. We'll be docking at Heath Peninsula, and then it's just a train ride away to the city."

Irvine blinked confused, "If we're taking a train in the end, why didn't we just start with that?"

Sandrea gazed back at him with a wry smile. "Take a train? Why Irvine, where's the fun in that? After all, if I took a train I knew I'd never have even a moment to rendezvous with you." She gave a playful wink.

Not sure if Sandrea was teasing, Irvine smiled politely in response. The wind blew stronger, as Trabia appeared in the far distance. Sandrea turned to him and sighed loudly again. "Our last moment has arrived." She placed her arms around her neck bringing herself to kiss him. Irvine returned the kiss, his gut twisting in all sorts of guilt. As their lips parted, Sandrea whispered, "This was the most fun I've had in awhile."

Irvine smiled, again not sure of how to respond. Did he enjoy himself? It was hard not to, but he felt miserable. He felt ashamed of the act, and who participated with him. Zell's words echoed in his mind. If he truly missed Selphie, couldn't he have controlled himself?

"I'm going go tell the gang to pack up." Irvine finally stated quietly. Sandrea didn't smile as he walked off, instead wore a straight face of disappointment that Irvine's last words as her lover were those.

The group of SeeDs packed up their things and huddled up in their warmest clothing. Irvine simply added a few layers underneath his SeeD uniform and put his traditional caramel coat on. The group met up at the starboard of the ship as the ship docked, dropping off only a few passengers.

The dock was very quiet, as it appeared only employees were there. A lone train stood ready to receive the ship's passengers. As expected, Sandrea took to a private cabin for herself, and a separate one for the rest of the SeeDs. Irvine sat beside Zell, hoping to be able to talk to him about Sandrea, but instead the blonde simply threw jokes of how if Sandrea liked him so much, he'd have been invited to her cabin.

Irvine sighed miserably wondering if he'd even be able to explain his actions, or if Zell would believe him. For once he wanted to talk about it, not to show off, but to relieve his guilty conscious. Although, Zell was a terrible person to provide sympathy on this matter.

Fighting his mind about Sandrea, Irvine didn't predict how he'd feel when they finally reached their destination. Sandrea emerged from her cabin, decked in a long light colored leather fur lined coat. Her hands were covered with matching gloves and scarf wrapped her neck. "Alright boys, we're here."

When Irvine walked out of the train station, his heart pounded loudly as he faced the Trabian city. Memories of the first time he'd come here, a few months shy of a year before, flashed through his mind. Rinoa ice skating, Seifer's bet, meeting Selphie for the first time ever— Irvine's heart burned in pain as he set eyes over the dreary gray city. Snowflakes pelted his face melting on contact as he turned his head side to side scanning the masses of people for the unusual hair style that belonged to Selphie.

"Kinneas."

Irvine didn't respond, his eyes were lost to crowds before. Selphie was somewhere in this city. No amount of negativity before could deter him now, he knew she was here, he felt her. He needed to find her!

"Kinneas." Zell repeated putting a hand on his shoulder. Irvine blinked out of his trance and turned around. A moment of silence passed between them as Zell scanned Irvine's desperate face. "Come on man, the car's waiting for us."

Irvine looked passed Zell and noticed Sandrea and the group of SeeDs walking along to a row of expensive cars lined up in the road. He gazed back at his view of the city and the square.

"Come on, don't get in trouble."  
"I slept with Sandrea."

Zell immediately let go of Irvine's shoulder and stared in bewilderment. Irvine hung his head miserably as his long hair blew in the cold Trabian wind. He remained silent and lifted his head to meet Zell's shocked gaze. "I don't know why, I feel awful— and I feel a hundred times worse now that I'm here. I'm here and I don't know what to do. I don't give a damn about Sandrea, or even the mission. I want to find Selphie, I got to find Selphie."

Trying to take in all he'd said, Zell shook his head a bit and gestured towards the cars behind them. "W-we gotta get to the cars, man." He stilled appeared stunned and too shocked to say much else. He grabbed Irvine's sleeve, and not looking a him anymore dragged him towards the cars.

As predicted, Zell didn't utter so much as word to Irvine through the car drive. Irvine didn't particularly mind since his mind was consumed now with one thing and one thing only, Selphie. He faced out the window scanning every figure that passed through to see if it held some significance to Selphie. Unfortunately nothing of any use came through that.

While the whole group of SeeDs awed at the amazing mansion the cars drove to, Irvine went through the motions not even caring of the grandeur of everything around them. Most everyone couldn't even fathom more luxury and intricacy than the ship they took, but grand Woods Manor was truly a sight to be seen.

Sandrea was warmly greeted by the servants inside; valets speedily collected everyone's luggage. Sandrea proudly walked into the large and beautiful foyer and raised her arms out wide. "Welcome gentlemen to the Trabian Woods Manor. Lovely isn't it?"

The bulk of the SeeDs vocalized their enthused opinions of Sandrea's wonderful home, but Irvine stayed quiet not even noticing how gorgeous his surroundings were.

"Mrs. Woods, your husband wishes to see you." A butler said properly leading the way for all to advance further into the house. Sandrea smiled and gestured the SeeDs to come along. Passed the foyer were large and elegant stairwells with thick banisters. Standing halfway up one of them stood a well dressed gentleman. Like Sandrea, he appeared at least middle-aged, perhaps older, but incredibly well kept. He had slick black hair, tall, well postured and wore a very polite grin.

"Ah Sandrea, welcome home." He said upon seeing the group. "I've missed you, my darling."

Sandrea turned to the group and smiled brightly, "Bodyguards, I'd like you to meet someone very special, the man who makes everything possible. My husband!" Sandrea scooted up the stairs and was met by warm loving embrace by her husband. They kissed shortly on the lips and faced the group, their arms still around each other.

Zell clubbed Irvine in the gut to catch his attention. "Look!" He hissed in excitement, "It's the owner and CEO of Woods Inc., Devin Woods!"

_AN:Yes, I stole one of the SeeDs full name from another game (One I haven't played in years and often miss dearly!). Can you guess who and where from?_


	40. Chapter 39

_"Kibun no mura wa shikatanai ne"  
("It's natural to feel whimsical")_

_Beautiful World  
Chapter Thirty-Nine_

Zell's clubbing certainly poked at Irvine's attention as he gazed up at Sandrea's husband. For the short time they'd been in Trabia, nothing had fazed Irvine until he saw the loving affection Sandrea and her husband shared. She kissed him as if he'd just returned home from war. He stroked her hair as if it were his first time to do so.

Irvine blinked madly in confusion. He could observe Sandrea's smile, but he couldn't understand it. If Sandrea and her husband had a relationship as wonderful as Zell had described, why in Hyne's name did she make an advance at Irvine? Irvine looked to Zell and whispered, "That's her husband, you're sure?"

Zell gave Irvine a curious glance, "Who else would she be acting like that with? It's like I've been telling you, they're known for being the number one couple around. They've been married for almost 30 years now."

Sandrea halted her PDA long enough to address the group of SeeDs. "Gentlemen, I'd like to explain the policies in which you'll be abiding too while working as my bodyguards. Similar to when we were on the ship, I always want you in close range, therefore— you are not to leave the manor unless otherwise told."

Irvine's heart sank almost immediately. If he couldn't leave the manor, how was he supposed to find Selphie?

"But tonight, I'll be out with Devin, so I'll only need my captains for now. The rest of you may do as you wish. Since I won't be here at the manor, I do not require you all to stay either. Be back before by morning of course as I will go into further details of how things are to be done." She smiled her thick red lips, "That being said, you all are dismissed." Sandrea turned back to her husband lacing her hands with his and staring dreamily into his eyes.

Too preoccupied to be disgusted with Sandrea's two faced relationship, Irvine's mind raced about realizing he had only tonight for sure to find Selphie. He didn't notice Zell shifting him along as the servants of the household picked up the luggage and led them to their room.

While the rest of the group moaned about their quarters being particularly repulsive in comparison to their settings on the trip, Irvine took a seat to himself. His head pounded as he continued to think of ways to find Selphie in a single night. With all his might, he tried to fight the realistic thought of failure aside.

"Alright guys, we're going with Mr. and Mrs. Woods. Stay out of trouble and be here by morning ready for duty." Soma shouted as he and Baros left the shoddy quarters. Not particularly buddy-buddy with the remaining SeeDs, Remus quickly and quietly took his leave as well.

Noticing the group of unfamiliar SeeDs left, Irvine stood up and looked around at his comrades. Zell, Seifer, Squall, and Nida dragged their bags of items towards the perimeter placed beds claiming a random one for them.

"Guys, I need your help." Irvine started quickly.

Zell, still a bit miffed from Irvine's statement from the train station, crossed his arms judgingly as he leaned against a chest of drawers. He raised his eyebrow waiting for Irvine to continue. Similarly, the rest of the SeeDs paid attention in a begrudging way.

"We're allowed to leave the manor tonight, so that means I got one night to find Selphie."

"I don't have time to help losers like you. I only got one night." Seifer snorted arrogantly.  
"I agree with Seifer, I also have no interest in helping you." Nida agreed snootily.  
"Yeah Kinneas, why should we help you? I mean how much could you care about finding Selphie when you claimed you slept with Mrs. Woods on the way here?" Zell said loudly halting everyone else's complaints and comments. The room hushed completely as Zell finished his statement. Shocked, everyone turned their faces to Irvine.

Irvine gazed around, almost bashful at everyone's condemnatory glances. He shook his head and rubbed his neck nervously. "Okay sure, I've done some bad things. I mean we all have, look at Seifer. He slept with Instructor Trepe!"

The group of SeeDs quickly shot their attention of to Seifer who threw Irvine a look of fierce anger. His eyes bulged and his cheeks burned with a tinge of red. "**How the hell did you find out about THAT**?" He growled clenching his fists around his bed posts, as if holding himself back from tackling Irvine.

"Didn't know for sure till just now." Irvine replied with a small chuckle.

Zell blinked and covered his mouth. "Oh daaamn! You slept with Instructor Trepe!?"

"Shut the hell up Chicken Wuss!" Seifer snapped instantly. His already flushed face appeared red and hot. He crossed his arms and turned away from the rest of the group. "Yeah I slept with Instructor Trepe, and so what if I did? She may be our teacher but she's our age and she's single! There's nothing wrong with what I did. I didn't steal her away like some people—SQUALL."

"You're not serio-" Squall started quietly under his breath.

"You couldn't wait to break us up could you Pretty Boy? What pisses me off the most is Instructor Trepe actually had a thing for you and instead you went around trying to take my girlfriend! One girl isn't enough for you huh?"

"Rinoa and Squall are dating?" Nida gasped.  
"Keep up Donner!" Zell hissed as engrossed into the gossip as a teenage girl.

"You're being ridiculous Seifer. I didn't know anything about Instructor Trepe. She's my instructor. As for Rinoa, I didn't steal her away Seifer; she came running after you cheated on her." Squall retorted coolly. He smirked almost proudly at his reply and his stance in the argument.

"Yeah— and using my date by the way!" Irvine added.  
"Oh who are you to speak Kinneas? You spent the whole night drooling over my date. I was Selphie's first pick and the great Irvine Kinneas just couldn't stand that could he?" Nida spewed hatefully.

Seifer and Squall had confronted each other and stood close enough for a brawl while Irvine stormed up to Nida and grasped him by the collar.

"You had no right to even talk to her!"  
"She's not property, Seifer."

"Why don't you just admit you were after Selphie just to spite me? Wasn't being with my sister enough?"  
"Don't flatter yourself Nida, I told you it was nothing personal! And as for your sister—wait who's your sister?"  
" You sicken me Kinneas! If it's not to spite me what the heck is it?"

Zell, standing alone on the side lines of everyone's argument scanned the room at and noticed the impending doom of an all out clash nearing eruption. "ALL OF YOU, SHUT UP!"

"Fine, what do I care about you two anyways?!" Seifer shouted only a foot away from Squall.  
"It's better you don't." Squall replied calmly, his eyes angrily darted towards Seifer.  
"Well what is it?" Nida taunted, surprisingly calm despite Irvine clutching his collar.  
"IT'S BECAUSE I'M IN LOVE WITH HER!" Irvine shouted silencing everyone in the room.

The room settled after everyone got out their last word following Zell's roar. They all quieted down and took a step back. Seifer begrudgingly returned to his own corner of the room shoving Squall roughly as he did. Irvine slowly let go of Nida's collar, and Nida in response scampered off closer to Zell. Zell exhaled deeply and looked around. "Man, am I the only one not involved your guys' crazed drama?"

"Jealous Chicken-Wuss?" Seifer added sleazily. Zell squinted his eyes irritably deciding to ignore his comment.

Irvine rubbed his temples and sat himself onto an empty bed. He groaned loudly as he squeezed his hat over his forehead. "Why should I expect you guys to believe me? Zell's right, I've been a terrible guy, before Selphie and even after her." He stared up, his face appearing miserable and exhausted. "But if you guys could imagine that I'm actually in love, in love with someone who makes me feel the way—" Irvine gazed over to Zell, "the way Amy makes you feel." He shifted over to Squall, "Or the way Rinoa makes you feel." Next he looked over to Seifer, and added in a nonjudgmental tone, "or Instructor Trepe." He lastly looked to Nida and added, "Or the way you feel when you're a total ass to people."Concluding, Irvine groaned loudly, "I just wish I could know she's okay. I love her guys. I really do—if you can believe that."

Irvine hung his head in silence while the SeeDs in the room shifted uncomfortably, no longer sure how to handle Irvine's moment of truth. While everyone sat back almost hiding from facing Irvine, Squall stepped up in front of him.

"I'll help you." He said quietly. Irvine met Squall's gaze and blinked.  
"Y-you will?" He gagged in shock. Squall nodded coolly in response.

"You know what Kinneas, I'll help you too." Zell said shooting a fake salute.  
"Well I guess someone should make sure you boy scouts don't do something stupid, I guess I'll join you." Seifer mumbled reluctantly.

Nida shifted uncomfortably as the four SeeDs in cahoots slowly formed together. "Well uh I suppose it is to help Selphie after all. I could manage to put aside or differences for now."

"Wow, I can't believe that speech worked on you guys. I kept thinking to myself how lame I sounded!" Irvine said enthused.

"Don't wet yourself Kinneas." Seifer replied with a sneer.

"Alright man, so what do you want us to do?" Zell asked punching his hands together in excitement. "Let's find Selphie!"

"Okay, well we'll split up. Two of us should go check out Selphie's house and her work place. It's probably best if the other two go to Town Square and ask around there." Irvine planned as he thought it in his head.

"Why Town Square, who would know Selphie there?" Squall questioned.

Irvine forgot that no one actually knew Selphie's origins, or from exactly what kind of upbringing she'd arrived from. "You know, it's probably best I go to Town Square now that I think about it. Nida, you stay here and in case Soma and Alexston get back, you can cover for us."

"Kinneas, you can't seriously think the three of us are going to hang out together. I mean even if it is for Selphie, it's not happening." Zell stated matter-of-factly.

Irvine rubbed the back of his neck, not exactly pleased to take someone along with him. As if tonight hadn't had its embarrassing points as it was, he didn't want to shed light on Selphie's shameful past too. However, another person with him could be useful. "Okay fine, how about Squall and I—"

"Kinneas! You're not sticking me with Seifer, he freakin' calls me Chicken-Wuss!" Zell exclaimed defiantly.  
"You should be flattered Chicken-Wuss, it's a term of endearment. Or humiliation, I forget." Seifer shrugged nonchalantly.

"Fine, Zell and Squall. Seifer and me. Nida holds down the fort. Everyone happy?" The SeeDs exchanged unpleasant looks of agreement and nodded. Irvine clapped his hands together, "Alright let's get this show on the road!"

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Selphie opened her eyes. Her head spun madly before even lifting it off the bed. She knew she must've been sleeping but she had no recollection of any time spent with Galn. A sigh escaped her parted and dry lips. Perhaps she hadn't thought this idea through entirely. Every so often Selphie found herself drifting off with only blackness to remember.

Struggling, Selphie positioned her hands beside her and forced herself into a sitting position. She felt out of breath and dizzy as soon as was propped up. She bent her knees inward and supported herself upon them. Slowly, she gazed out the window to the blank white fields of falling snow. She missed the blankets of sea green grass and waves of the distant tropic ocean from Galn's word.

_If I keep going like this… am I ever going to see Galn again?_ Realizing she was already giving up Mr. Devin, Selphie began to feel nervous about carrying on her slow suicide. She looked towards the kitchen, stuffed from uneaten foods. The grocer had come and left an excess of everything she no longer ate. The time of hunger had long passed, Selphie no longer recognized she was hungry— just weak, and tired.

She fell back down on her bed again and rested, exhausted from sitting up. Aches and pain came and went, Selphie ignored them and closed her eyes waiting for the spinning sensation from her head to quell and drift into slumber.

For the first time in days Selphie awoke to the bright light and ambience of Galn's world. She sat upon the small bed of the white room. A smile touched her lips as she leapt off the bed with energy that only existed in her imagination now. She threw open the room's door and rushed out. The common room was empty save for the lone furniture, unadorned and white.

"Galn?" Selphie called meekly. No answer, no sudden appearance—the room remained empty and lonesome. Selphie gazed about the blank white walls, noticing a door she'd never ventured through. Although hesitant to make much of a move without Galn's guidance, she did want to find him. She breathed in deeply and thrust open the door running out. Like the room she'd just exited, the hallways she'd entered were white and expressionless. Everything remained well lit, but nonetheless white.

Selphie turned her head side to side seeing no indication of which way to go. Clueless, she chose a direction and rushed down the corridor of blankness. As she ran down the hall, she came across a familiar face, the black headed friend of Galn's. "Hey," Selphie said between breaths, "do you know where Galn is?"

The girl smiled sweetly but no words passed her lips. Selphie sighed hopelessly and began running again. Not too long afterward Selphie saw the other two friends of Galn's. Like the first friend, neither of them spoke. Now desperate, Selphie kept rushing through until she came across a pair of blonde men. Not excited to meet new faces, Selphie hesitantly asked, "Do either of you know where Galn is?"

One of the blonde men turned around and faced Selphie. He raised a large hand in the air, perhaps to strike her, but as Selphie laid eyes upon a large black tattoo running along the side of face, she screamed bloody murder and ran off before any response was made.

Selphie rushed out and reached the outdoors. She stopped abruptly and relaxed taking in the beautiful view of the sea green grass against the distant blue ocean. However, there remained one odd commodity in her vision. Other than the fields and ocean, there were bouts of white scattered throughout. Even though the rest the scene was as beautiful as she'd always pictured from the window in her room, she'd grown tired and sad for failing to find Galn. Tears filled her eyes as she miserably plopped herself onto the ground, which where she sat looked white as well.

"You're in my way."

Shocked to hear a voice other than her own, Selphie leapt to her feet and spun around. Behind her was a handsome man, most likely her age, with brown hair, gray eyes and a scar running across his face. Selphie inspected the man's face, not as frightened of him as the tattooed man from before. "You—talk?"

The man crossed his arms and stayed quiet a moment. Finally he uncrossed his arms and spoke again. "I know I don't talk much, doesn't mean I can't."

"I meant, nobody else is talking, or can talk. How come you can?" Selphie explained. The gentleman gave her an odd look and shook his head. A few moments of silence passed before the man chose to speak again.

"They all can talk, you just can't remember what they sound like." He said quietly. He turned away allowing some more quietness pass, "wonder why you remember what I sound like."

Selphie blinked, "Remember? What do you mean? I don't 'remember' any of this. This place is all made up, it's not real— I mean it's not, right?" She stared hard, burning focus into the gentleman's turned back.

"This is a real place." He pointed towards a random blank spot in the distance, "Did you notice that? It's not like that in real life, it's just you forgot what it looked like."

_This place… is real? Galn is real? He's—he's a-_ "a memory." Selphie breathed quietly. "It's all my memory? Galn—you—this whole place is real?" Feeling light headed, Selphie began to hyperventilate. Galn existed, he was somewhere in the real world. Selphie had met him before! "Tell me! Where's Galn? I have to see him!"

"I don't know anyone named that." The gentleman responded.

"B-but," She began weakly and defeated. _That's right, Galn's not his real name. I never could remember his name. It makes sense now._ "I don't remember what his name is, how can I find him?"

The gentleman turned around finally facing her again. "We'll be here."

"Huh? What do you mean?"  
"We'll be here, so if you come, you'll find us."  
"You mean in the real world?"

He gave a small smile and nodded, "Yeah."  
"How do I know you're telling the truth?" Selphie asked meekly.

"I promise." Quietly, he turned around again and began to walk away leaving Selphie alone in the fragmented world of her memories. Despite not being any closer to finding Galn, Selphie felt elated with a new sense of hope. All of Galn's ranting actually had validity! She could find him not in her dreams only but in the real world. She just had to find this place. She scanned the area; it was near an ocean, in a clearly warmer climate than Trabia. When had she left Trabia?

"I gotta go now." The man said quietly as he began to walk away in the mixed green and white distance.

"Wait!" Selphie cried out stopping him, "What's your name?"  
"If you ever make it here," The man began to walk again, "I'll tell you." He faded into the blur of colors leaving the area around her silent.

Selphie exhaled deeply, unsure of what to do now. She fell flatly on her bottom and sighed loudly. Trapped in her little home in Trabia, there'd be no way to find Galn and this magical place in the real world. Did Devin know about this place? Could he… take her there?

"Unable to follow such simple directions it seems."

Out of thin air appeared Mr. Devin. Sharp as ever in his neat and trimmed suit and hair, he smiled wryly at a floored Selphie. Unable to respond or take any verbal action at all, Selphie opened her mouth but Devin continued to speak. "I tell you to work at the fountain, and you run away from your duties. I tell you not to disobey me again, and you run—" Devin paused as a sneer of disgust went across his face, "you run to this place."

"Wha—" Selphie finally sputtered out, "What do you mean?"

Devin viewed the area around him and replaced his face of disdain with his conventional and polite smile. "What miserable place this is, no glamour to be seen." Selphie opened her mouth to express her opinion, but Mr. Devin quickly continued. "I see nothing special here." He finally faced Selphie again. Roughly, he leaned down and grasped Selphie's arm and yanked her to her feet. "Ah look, I just found something of interest." He began to walk away, Selphie's arm still deeply in his hold.

"No— wait, stop!" Selphie cried out.  
"You won't be making **any** orders here." Mr. Devin replied calmly.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

After the plan to scout for Selphie had been made, the four SeeDs set out. Squall and Zell took directions from Irvine and headed to the run down neighborhood on the outskirts of the town square while Seifer and Irvine headed into the dreary city town.

Zell and Squall remained relatively silent the whole time until they'd come closer to their destination. "Irvine said it was the third house on the left here, but do you think we made a wrong turn some place? I mean I don't think anyone's lived around here for years." Zell commented unsurely as he eyed the row of dilapidated shacks along the dirty road.

Squall gazed around slowly and shrugged. "We might have."

Rubbing his hands together to fight against the harsh cold, Zell shuddered slightly. "Man to think people do live here. I mean, look—" Zell pointed with cold hands over the roof tops of nearby houses, "Smoke! People do live around here." He slowly brought his hand back to his side realizing his own question answered, "So that means we're probably in the right place."

Wordlessly, Squall crossed his arms and shrugged his shoulders.

Unsure of how to take Squall's unhelpful gesture, Zell breathed into his hands and marched towards the third house on the left and knocked loudly on its peeling paint door. "Hey Selphie! Selphie you in there? It's Zell, and Squall!" Inside, Zell could hear shuffling and small voices but none sounded like a girl's, let alone Selphie. "Selphie, you in there?"

Nervously, Zell looked back to Squall who uncrossed his arms and approached him slowly. Without a word, Squall put his hand on the cold doorknob, gave it a jostle and pushed the door in. Immediately after stepping in, the small voices evolved into something much louder.

"HEY MAN! GET OUT! THIS IS OUR PLACE!"

Zell leapt before Squall and raised his hands up, "We don't want any trouble! We're just looking for our friend!" Zell peered about observing the inside of the little house. The ceiling was intact, but the whole place dark due to the only light coming from a small fireplace. Three people buried in their coats huddled around the fire, one man on his feet facing Squall and him. "We're looking for a girl named Selphie, her friend told us she lives here."

The man shook his head and faced the fire again, "Nope, we don't know anyone named that. If she lived here before, she's gone now. No one's owned this place for months."

Zell turned to Squall who shook his head. Sighing loudly, the blonde turned around, not noticing Squall wasn't following him. "Who wrote this here?" He heard Squall's low monotonous voice echoing in the small stone room. Zell turned around and could make out Squall's silhouette pointing to something over the fireplace.

The group of huddled people exchanged glances until one of them finally stood up, a smaller fellow who hadn't spoken yet. "I'm the only one who reads. It says someone's name usually. S-see, there's a whole lot of them. Ours is this one." He pointed to a brick closest to the fire. "Since these part of the slums don't really have any owners, people kind of just claim them by writing their name like that. If the person doesn't show up for a while, it means the house is up for grabs."

Squall nodded to signify he understood as he looked at the bricks carefully. "Zell," He said softly. Zell rushed over and nodded waiting for Squall to continue. He pointed to the brick next to the newly encrypted one and read, "It says here, 'Selphie- DW'."

"Selphie-DW?" Zell repeated confused, "It's gotta be our Selphie right?"  
"Could be." Squall replied softly. He turned around and began heading for the door. "Thanks for your help."

Zell waved goodbye to the group and rushed out behind Squall. "Squall!" He called as soon as they'd both exited the tiny shack. "Squall, what do you think that means? I mean DW?"

Squall shook his head slowly, "I don't know, but they said no one lived there before them for awhile, so it's safe to say that if Selphie did come back to Trabia, she didn't go back there. So we haven't really found anything."

Releasing an exasperated groan, Zell hung his head. "Don't sound so negative like that man! I wouldn't want to live in that pile of junk either. I can't believe Selphie did live there— I kinda respect her a little more now."

Squall raised an eyebrow as a response, no words accompanying it.

"Don't get me wrong, I just thought it was kind of weird she liked Kinneas so much. I mean she's always all over him. Well now they're kind of a couple, I mean they were but before that even." Zell stutteringly explained.

Squall neutralized his glance and looked in the distance, not actually focused on anything, but just sitting in his head thinking. "If Irvine knew Selphie lived here, that means he met her here first…" Squall crossed his arms and thought to himself for a few moments in silence.

"Yeah and?" Zell pressed eager to hear Squall's conclusion.  
"…Then does that mean Irvine brought Selphie to Balamb Garden?"

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine pushed through the bustles of people in town square eyeing oncoming strangers as closely as he could in the few seconds he had with each person. Seifer, with a bored expression followed and trudged along as they finally came to a clearing in the square. Irvine scouted the area, turning his head side to side desperate to find a familiar face.

"So your plan was to just come to most crowded part of the city and just look for her? Literally? Oh genius, we should find her in about— I'd say thirty years?" Seifer glanced over at Irvine, who clearly gave his clever joke no attention, continued to scour the crowds with his eyes. Irritated with the lack of attention, Seifer roughly grabbed Irvine by the shoulder shaking him back to attentiveness. "Kinneas! This is stupidest thing I've ever done, we've got one night and you are acting like a chocobo with its head cut off."

Wordlessly, Irvine clutched Seifer's grips on his shoulders and threw them off. He frowned and continued to look around. Most of the people in the area pointed their head down to avoid the cold winds in their faces; unfortunately it made it difficult to see much of anything.

"This is getting us nowhere." Seifer muttered. He brushed passed Irvine and grabbed the first person in sight. "Hey you!" Irvine blinked in shock as Seifer rough handled a complete stranger. "You ever seen a little person, about this tall," He gestured Selphie's petite height, "and funny brown hair around here? Her name is Selphie."

"N-no! Don't take my money!" The stranger slipped out of Seifer's loosening grip and ran as fast as he could.

Irvine shook his head, "That was smooth."

"Better asking someone than looking blankly into the masses of people." Seifer replied calmly. "Anyways, you had some reason for coming here; it couldn't be to just stare at people all night, could it?"

A moment of silence passed between the two of them as Irvine slowly moved his head and faced the middle of the square. Between the gaps of people, the ladies of the fountain could be seen in their gaudy shiny dresses. Seifer took a few moments to notice what exactly Irvine faced, once he did, he didn't quite grasp Irvine's intention.

"Sniper Slut, keep it in your pants! I thought we had something important to do."

Again, without response, Irvine moved through the crowds and slowly approached the group of women standing around the fountain. A few sat along its edges huddling to stay warm while trying to shine their faces towards the men passing by. Upon seeing Irvine actually coming towards them, anyone sitting jumped to their feet as they came to him.

Irvine immediately held out his hands and smiled his charmingly polite grin, "Ladies, before you say anything I just came here to ask you a question."

Their faces fell immediately as most went back to sitting down. A few eyed Irvine curiously and crossed their arms. "Are you a cop?"

"Nope, just a guy passing by." Irvine replied, still smiling.  
"What's with the uniform?" Another woman asked with an aggressive attitude.

"Could ask you the same thing." Came Seifer's voice as he appeared by Irvine. "But from now on, we'll be asking the rest of the questions, got it?"

The women cautiously took a step back, "Wait why are there two of you? Are you guys here to arrest us? Hey you take up anything you want with Jaxon. He'll deal with it. We are not doing anything!" The woman closest to Irvine and Seifer stood up defiantly, however clearly afraid and threatened by what the pair of them might be there for.

"Listen ladies, we're not here to arrest you. Really, we're bodyguards, not police men." Irvine explained trying to calm the edgy ladies.

"Well, if you're not paying customers and you're not cops, we don't got time for you." The woman who'd been speaking continued. She sat back with the rest of the women as they unanimously ignored Seifer and Irvine.

Seifer rolled his eyes and pulled out his wallet, "I got 1000 gil here for the lady who answers all our questions." The woman came back to her feet and stepped forward with a new smile on her face. She gently stroked the arm Seifer held the wallet with.

"Now you're talking our language, let's see what I can help you boys with."

Seifer smiled wryly as he looked to Irvine. Content, he nodded his head over leading the lady away from the fountain. As soon as they were a comfortable distance away, Seifer yanked the lady's arms off of his and stood by Irvine directly in front of her.

"Alright Kinneas, she's all yours."  
"Hey— you are going to pay me, right?" The lady kept her voice calm, but appeared uneasy.  
"What did I say? Answer our questions, stop asking them!" Seifer snapped as he opened his wallet. He pulled out 1000 gil and threw it towards the lady. "Now, shut the hell up until we ask you something."

Seifer nodded to Irvine gesturing for him to speak up finally. Shaking his head in agreement, Irvine tightened his hat around his head and spoke to the lady from the fountain. "We wanted to know if you know a girl named Selphie."

"That it?" The woman replied flatly.  
"What the hell did I just tell you?" Seifer growled as he took a step towards the woman.

Irvine held his arm out halting Seifer. "Listen, we're trying to find her. Have you seen her around? Do you remember her?"

The lady shrugged, "I remember her, little thing right? Short, funny hair, always kind of quiet. She always sat at that fountain, but didn't do much for business. She got a few regulars but she was kinda the last resort girl when the rest of us were busy."

Irvine glanced to Seifer nervously wondering what he was thinking as the lady spoke. He looked back to her trying to ignore his concern for revealing Selphie's past. "Yeah, that's gotta be her. Where is she?"

"How would I know? She just stopped showing up like a year ago. Jaxon wasn't worried about her though. I wasn't surprised though. She didn't belong to him like the rest of us." The lady replied casually without any concern in her voice.

"Who's Jaxon?" Seifer asked to Irvine's surprise.

"He's our boss, runs the fountain. Gives us a place to stay and all. Selphie didn't live there though ever, she came and went. That's probably why Jaxon wasn't mad when she disappeared. He was never close to her, like he is us."

"Where can we find him?" Seifer pressed having ignored half of the woman's earlier statement.

"I can't tell you that, he'd kill me!"

"Fine," Seifer exhaled loudly as he pulled out his wallet, "how much gil would it take for you to tell me?" Noticing the woman wasn't responding well to bribery, Seifer coldly added,  
"Also, if I didn't mention it before, we're both armed, and licensed to kill."

The lady scoffed, "You're bluffing. You think your uniforms scare me?"

Irvine and Seifer exchanged glances. With a shrug of agreement, they both brought their weapons out, swift and so fast the woman didn't even notice how it happened. Irvine aimed his gun at the woman's head, and Seifer rested the tip of his sword against her neck. "Who's bluffing now?" Irvine asked coolly.

"Okay, OKAY! I'll tell you!" The woman nearly squealed. She might've been aiming to scream, but the cold steel of Seifer's gunblade kept her volume controlled.

Just as quickly as they appeared, the weapons were placed back in their sheath or holster hidden under their owner's coats. Irvine pulled out his own wallet and blindly pulled out whatever bills were inside. "Just take us to him, now." The woman nodded slowly as she stepped forward, her legs shaking under her dress. For a few minutes, Seifer and Irvine followed in silence, keeping their guide in careful sight but maintaining a distance so she couldn't hear them talk amongst one another.

Although Irvine felt knots in his throat just thinking about it, he wanted to know what Seifer had now learned about Selphie. Did he realize the whole story or just a bit of it? As he opened his mouth to speak, Seifer interrupted him.

"So you met Selphie when we came for that conference, huh?" Seifer said softly, assuring the woman from the fountain couldn't hear him, facing her so he didn't lose her to the crowds.

Irvine clicked his tongue and sighed. "Figured it out, huh?"  
"I am smarter than you, so yeah. Selphie's the one that won the bet for you then?"  
"Honestly? I totally bull shitted that part. We never slept together and I ended paying her 500 gil." Irvine replied with a laugh recalling the irony of that day.  
"Better pay up Kinneas, looks like you owe me 1500 gil now."  
"Looks like it."

If 1500 gil was all took to meet Selphie, fall in love with her, make her apart of her life, and bring her back to it, no fee was ever smaller. Irvine counted whatever was left in his wallet after paying the prostitute. He handed the bills to Seifer and smiled brightly. "Thanks Seifer."

"For taking charge and whipping the hooker into shape? No problem, I always knew you had no back bone."  
"Uh, yeah not that. I could have handled that on my own." Irvine stated defensively. He shook his head trying to remember where his kind sentiment started. He took in a breath and said quietly, "I meant for making that bet with me. If you never made that bet, I would never met Selphie."

Seifer laughed, "I'm kicking myself now. If you never met her we'd be chilling at a bar or something fun instead of doing this!" He looked Irvine in the eye and placed his hand on his shoulder. "You and her—are a lot less annoying together."

"Gee, that's so sweet of you Seifer." Irvine chuckled sarcastically. "So can I ask then why you were kissing her that day?"

"Are you never going to let that go?" Seifer snapped. Before Irvine could reply, or Seifer continue, the two of them noticed their guide had come to a stop in the middle of a residential street. The houses appeared in good condition and were actually pretty large.

"This is where we live, okay? Jaxon is inside. Just please," The lady met eyes with them, although she remained shaky and scared from their earlier threat she appeared desperate, "please don't tell him I brought you here."

"Couldn't if I wanted to." Irvine replied as he swept passed her. Seifer followed closely as the two of them approached the door. The two of them stared dauntingly at the front door, hesitant to knock on it. "What's the worse that can happen, right?" Irvine comment with a bit of forced laughter. He fisted his hand and knocked on the door softly.

Seifer threw an irritated glare at Irvine, "We're not here to sell cookies!" With that, he pushed Irvine out of his way and pounded against the door loudly and yelled, "OPEN UP!"

"Are you trying to get us killed?!" Irvine snapped.

"Like you said, what's the worse that could happen?" Seifer glanced at Irvine playfully, still beating against the door.

The door opened quickly revealing a short man behind it. He was only moderately groomed wearing an old suit and tie that looked due for a cleaning. He stared at the two men at his door step carefully. "You guys the police?"

"Why do people keep asking us that? Do you all seriously not know what your own police men look like?" Seifer retorted hastily with frustration.

Irvine ignored his hot-headed comrade and spoke directly to the man inside the house. "We're not cops, we're looking for Jaxon. Is that you?"

"Who wants to know?" The man asked gruffly.  
"The lady savior— who do you think, US YOU LOSER!" Seifer shouted into the man's face.

"Seifer, just cool it man!" Irvine hissed pushing him aside. "We wanted to ask you a few questions."

"I don't do interviews." The man said as he began to close the door.

Seifer stretched out his arm between the door and its frame halting it from being closed. "It's a good thing we're not journalists then. We said we got some questions for you and we're not afraid to use force." The man peered edgily passed the half closed door. "So open up, let us in, and answer our damn questions. It's windy out here, we've been at this for like hours now, and it's -10 degrees out here, don't mess with us!" Seifer gave the door a bit of a shove as the man gave way and let the two inside.

The interior of the house contrasted from the outside. While the exterior appeared pretty, clean and well tended, the inside was not. The walls were discolored desperate for new paint, and areas with aged wallpaper peeled with an ancient look to it. Jaxon himself represented the inside of his home with his own appearance of only semi tended hair and his odd combination of clothing: an undershirt with slacks.

"Fine you boys are in, now what the hell do you want?"

Confidently, and partially in attempts to beat Seifer to it, Irvine stepped forward and stated clearly, "We're looking for Selphie Tilmitt, do you know where she is?"

Jaxon appeared taken aback from Irvine's question. He glared at him curiously before walking away into a nearby parlor. The room clearly illustrated its housing of women with random accessories and lacy dresses randomly strewn about. The thick smell of cigarettes and cigars with an underlying mossy and water logged odor filled the dim and messy room. Jaxon held out his arm offering Seifer and Irvine to a chair, although none of them were free of women's articles. He sat himself down onto the most adorned piece of furniture in the room, a regal grand oak desk. As he leaned back he picked up a fat cigar and lit it. "I'd offer you two some, but I have a feeling you're just here to give me trouble, so I don't want to be all that hospitable."

"Wasn't really expecting it." Mumbled Seifer sardonically as he cautiously removed some women's hosiery off the armrest of his chair.

Jaxon sucked in a deep breath through his cigar before meeting eye contact with Irvine. "So you want to about know about Selphie eh? Why?"

"That's our business." Seifer retorted snappily.

"We're friends of hers." Irvine added quickly after Seifer's snarky reply.

Jaxon eyed the two carefully and chortled hoarsely between exhales of smoke. He gave a sly toothy grin, revealing his tobacco yellowed teeth. "Friends huh? No need to play stupid here gentlemen. I'm not a cop, and I know what Selphie is. Well you're looking for that little girl huh? I can't say I ever understood men who liked her. Anyways, I can't really help you."

"You can't tell us anything?" Irvine shouted immediately jumping to his feet. Seifer quickly grabbed the end of Irvine's shirt and yanked him back into his chair. Ignoring Seifer, Irvine continued to glare angrily at the semi groomed man smoking the fat cigar before him.

"Let's just say, it's probably better I don't tell you anything. She's a little more trouble than she's worth that one." Jaxon smiled sinisterly letting smoke seep between his teeth.

Irvine stayed silent for a moment. He opened his mouth to argue but a thought crossed his mind. Quietly and hesitantly he uttered, "Are you Mr. Devin?"

Jaxon dropped his smile almost instantly and raised his eyebrow. He gripped his cigar and pulled it from between his lips slowly meeting Irvine's eyes. As he placed the cigar away on an ashtray he sat up and came a bit closer to Irvine. "How do you know that name?"

"You're him?" Irvine repeated.

Picking up his cigar again, a grin appeared on Jaxon's face. He laughed heartily, "Well isn't this fun? You know what kid, I'll tell you something. Your little friend? She's in Trabia alright. 17th street from town square— follow it till nothing's around. You might be surprised what you find."

Seifer scoffed, "Yeah? What's that? A firing squad?"  
"Aren't you distrusting?" Jaxon replied coolly.  
"Yeah, I'm crazy for not trusting some pimp to somehow lead us to our doom."

Irvine came to his feet, "Why are ya helping us? If that is the information we want, why tell us so easily?"

"Maybe I want to help you, or maybe I'm just bored. I guess that's for you to find out. Now get out of here— **friends** of Selphie." He chuckled again.

Irvine and Seifer exchanged confused glances. They both had the same hesitation that Jaxon was lying, but sitting in his odorous parlor any longer wouldn't help either. They gave each other a nod of understanding and faced Jaxon. "Thanks for your time, Jaxon." Irvine said tipping his hat.

Jaxon watched the two exit the room and head towards the door. He followed them slowly as the front door opened he spoke again stopping Irvine and Seifer in their tracks. "A word to the wise boys," He started before inhaling deeply with his cigar. Irvine turned around and faced Jaxon, his eyes desperate for more information, or at least validation that Jaxon hadn't set them up. Jaxon blew out his smoke and gave a toothy grin, "If you're really going out to see your little friend, I'd be careful if I were you."

"So you are tricking us?" Seifer muttered coldly, his back to Jaxon.

Jaxon clicked his tongue in denial and shook his head, "How should I put in words you boys understand? Well, how about this? Some people don't like it when you play with their toys without permission. Alright?" Jaxon turned his back to Irvine ready to head back into his parlor. "Oh, and if you two come back here or mention you ever were here— I may not look it, but I have friends in high places and I would hate to have to waste a favor on taking care of you kids."

Seifer laughed evilly, "Don't worry old man, we've got no interest to even keep this event in our memory." He let himself out, Irvine begrudgingly as he stared at Jaxon's back until they made it down the front walkway outside the house.

"Man, what a waste of time, huh?" Seifer commented as they left Jaxon's premises.

Irvine shook his head in confusion and faced Seifer, "What do you mean a waste of time? He might've told us where Selphie is!"

"Or he might've told us the quickest way to get killed." Seifer stopped and grabbed Irvine roughly by the shoulder. "You can't really take what that weirdo said seriously! The man runs a prostitute ring and you really think he wants to help us? You heard that whore, Selphie has nothing to do with him."

"Yeah but—" Irvine protested.

"Listen Kinneas! This is our first night on our mission, I intend for it not to be our last. If you're going to continue this wild goose chase, do it alone. You're not getting me killed." Seifer gruffly let go of Irvine and stamped his way down the road leaving Irvine alone in the residential area.

Irvine huffed out a breath into the cold air watching it's white puff appear from his lips and fade away. Slightly aggravated that Seifer abandoned him, Irvine stared down the way towards town square. While Seifer made a very realistic point, Irvine couldn't fight this lead to Selphie. Jaxon did sound like he knew her, and it was only after Irvine mentioned Devin's name that he became even remotely helpful. Why was that anyways?

_Nevermind, I can't think about this any longer, I need to find Selphie! _Irvine shook his thoughts aside and began running down towards town square. By the time he'd reached the central square full of hustle and bustle, his lungs burned from the icy air. He scouted for street signs. His eyes strained passing sign by sign until he focused on 17th Street.

As he turned the corner ready to race down the lane as far as it went, Irvine stopped recalling his cold finger tips and frost burned chest. Further down, the street didn't actually look well lit, and the road from where he stood already looked dreary enough. Going alone seemed precarious, even for as desperate as he was.

_I just need a car! That's it!_ Irvine slipped his wallet out thankful that Seifer didn't remember to take the 1500 gil Irvine racked up in debt. He counted his gil and scanned the area. Surely there was somewhere he could get a car.

Luckily, there was one location open and available. It was overpriced for rickety old ride, but Irvine felt a little more secure as he began driving down 17th street.

''''''''''''''''''''''''

"So you let him go alone?" Zell questioned Seifer surprisingly shocked.

"Oh relax, he's a big boy. He can take care of himself." Seifer scoffed as he threw himself on his bed.

"Still doesn't seem like a good idea." Squall commented softly, also making himself comfortable on his bed.

"Shut up Pretty Boy, I don't need to hear anything from you!" Snapped Seifer as he jerked up into a position high enough to throw a dirty frown towards Squall.

Zell stood up and paced across the room with his hand tucked in the back of the waist line of his pants. "Did you even think about what could happen? We could get it serious trouble."

Seifer clicked his tongue in annoyance, "I suppose if he ends up dead I'll feel kinda bad about it." He sat up and eyed Zell who marched back and forth through the room staring hard the floor. "If you're so worried about your wife, why don't you go after him?" He added with a sneaky undertone.

"Oh shut up Seifer." Zell mumbled halting in his repetitive march. "Do you seriously he'll seriously find her?"

"Well hope he finds something, cause' you and Pretty Boy were absolutely useless." Seifer laughed haughtily as he laid back down on his bed. Zell groaned irritably and sat down at the foot of a vacant bed. A hush came over the room as the three SeeDs sat with their thoughts. This didn't last long as the door burst open with Nida running in.

"Is Kinneas back yet?" He asked, huffing. None of the SeeDs replied allowing Nida to gaze across the room and discover Irvine was not anywhere to be seen. "Well where is he? Seifer, weren't you partnered with him?"

"Don't get me started." Seifer growled under his breath.

"He's not here Nida, why is it so important?" Zell questioned as he dragged a hand over his tired face.

"Mr. and Mrs. Woods returned. Baros and Tag are calling all of us."

"Well, Mrs. Woods gave us the whole night off. Kinneas has until morning to get back. If he's not back then, we're screwed."

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine hunched over his steering wheel gazing into the dark distance ahead. He'd turn his car lights on as bright as they'd go, but still the darkness fought back almost consuming the car. Irvine didn't feel threatened by the dark, normally, but driving in the snow into the unknown in the dark seemed a little more necessary of worry.

He glanced over the gas meter, pleased that it remained over the ¾ line still. Despite that, he couldn't help but fight the uncertainty that this trip was just a wild goose chase made up from Jaxon's mean sense of humor. Irvine shook his head and strained his eyes to observe the area outside.

From as far as he could see, there was nothing around anymore except empty, white, bland fields. Barbed wire fencing and a sad excuse of a road appeared the lone signs of any human civilization. The fenced off areas were enormous squats of land, none habiting anything more than mounds of snow.

Beginning to lose his optimism, Irvine continued driving forward down the road watching the blank landscape hoping to see something different, something unusual. He groaned aloud, almost ready to turn around and start the rather lengthy drive back to the actual community before something caught his eye.

Between two sizeable plots sat one lonesome square acre, unfenced. The lack of bordering wasn't the only thing that separated this plot from the others; it also had a small house upon it. Irvine jerked the car's breaks immediately, too stunned to believe his own eyes. He'd found something!

Irvine nervously drove the car a little closer, stopping just short of the neighboring plot's fence line. He shut the car and exited his heart racing as he stepped out back into the chilly winds. Small amounts of light slipped through the windows of the house, not leaving much light between Irvine and the rest of the night. He cautiously stepped off the road into the deep snow, letting his foot fall deep with each step.

If Selphie actually was in that house, he'd found her. So easily, he'd found her! In one night he managed to reunite with the kidnapped love of his life. Irvine stopped in the middle of his excited thoughts realizing one major factor. If Selphie was in the house, his pursuit truly would be easy, just too easy. What if she it wasn't her? What if it wasn't even a real lead? What if Selphie was in there with someone else?

Irvine gritted his teeth as he fought through his thoughts. He'd come this far, and he couldn't turn back now. He pulled out his gun and held with both hands as he began to run with full speed towards the house. As he came closer, he slowed down cautiously stepping towards a window from which light gleamed from. Hiding most of his body, he peered in noticing the light came from the main room. From his current angle he noticed a fire place, a table, and two doors in the back. From the sight of the small house, whatever the doors led to, they were either exits or very small rooms. What he hadn't seen yet was a person.

Still quietly stalking about, Irvine moved towards another window. From this angle he noticed a bed, but only could make out a small silhouette of the person lying on top of it. His heart began to pump loudly again. He felt its beat pound so hard he worried it was making more noise than him. Before leaving his current position, he spotted yet another window right beside that bed. He hadn't seen any other movement, so it felt safe to assume no one but the person on the bed was in the house. To be sure, Irvine spied on the two doors for lights or shadows to indicate another living creature within the four walls.

After a few moments, Irvine felt assured that the house remained empty, save for the soul on the bed. He ducked down and crept to the side of the house where the window by the bed stood. Breathing in the frosted air deeply, Irvine straightened his legs and peered into the foggy glass window. Lying on the simple bed beyond the glass, laid his wonderful, sweet, unusual Selphie.

She rested peacefully adorned in a yellow sweater that appeared too loose on her with black leggings, that also, oddly enough appeared stretched out or too big. Irvine forgot to breath, he simply felt lost in the sight of Selphie. She lay there, so peaceful, so close— Irvine felt scared to move, breath, even think.

Selphie turned her head, her face making a facial grimace as she did. Immediately upon seeing an active movement, Irvine thrust his hand on the frozen glass and shouted, "SELPHIE!" Selphie shook her head a bit in response, but didn't wake. Irvine hit the glass again, without realizing it was glass, shouting even louder, "SELPHIE WAKE UP IT'S ME!"

Inside the small house Selphie turned her head from side to side. Inside her little head she was with Mr. Devin in her fragmented world of memories as he threw her against the floor. Selphie looked up tearfully at him, deadly afraid of his next move. The incredibly distinct voice of Galn over powered everything in the area as she heard his echoing voice declaring, _"SELPHIE WAKE UP! IT'S ME!"_ She turned from side to side desperately seeking Galn's comforting face. All she saw was a dauntingly angry Devin before her.

"Galn…" She whispered meekly, "I'm really scared." She shut her eyes and heard again. _"YOU GOTTA WAKE UP!"_ At that instant she opened her eyes, in her dream, and in reality.

After seeing someone right outside window, she jumped so high she fell from her bed in shock. Outside, Irvine stopped banging and simply gazed through the window waiting for Selphie to meet eyes with him. She slowly came to her feet and approached the window, her eyes growing wider by the minute. Her lips parted as she uttered a word that Irvine didn't make out. Next she screamed with a smile consuming her face, "IT'S YOU!"

She leapt off the bed and raced towards the door, outside, Irvine did the exact same thing. Selphie yanked the door open allowing the cold air to billow into the house. Irvine appeared a second later and swept her up as smoothly as the wind. Despite being as cold as the snow outside, Selphie clutched desperately into Irvine's embrace.

There were so many words Selphie wanted to say, but none actually came out. Instead, she held herself close to Irvine and breathed in the moment. As she took in his scent of cologne and gunpowder, a feeling of nostalgia went through her—so vivid it almost put a picture in her mind. That smell, she clearly remembered it. She used to fall asleep with that aroma circulating around her.

_"Sefie? What's wrong? W-why ya crying?" Irvine asked panicked._

_Selphie slowly loosened her embrace and looked Irvine in the eye. "Sorry Irvy, I just had a bad dream— I'm kind of scared of going back to bed now."_

_As easily as lifting a pillow, Irvine swooped his petite friend into his arms and returned her back to her bed, "Don't ya worry. I'll stay with you until ya fall asleep. I'll chase any bad dreams you got with my best friend, here." Irvine patted his rifle that rested safely in his long holster._

_"I'd really like that Irvy." Selphie said as she snuggled onto the mattress._

Selphie loosened her grip enough to look over onto Irvine's face.

"_Irvyn…Irveen?" She read the last word on the paper aloud. Unlike the other words it'd been written numerously. She kept repeating the name with a few differences. Eventually she opened her mouth and said clearly, "Irvine." Her heart skipped a beat upon saying the name aloud. Although she had no recollection of who or what an 'Irvine' was, something in her felt for sure that she was correctly saying it. _

_ She glanced at the paper again reading Irvine's name, her heart almost hurting each time. "Maybe I'm sick?" Selphie thought aloud, dropping the paper and walking to her bed. Perhaps the grocer had brought rotten food, or perhaps she was still weak. She closed her eyes and tried to rest, the name Irvine still echoing in her head. _

"Irvine…" She breathed, a feeling of joy running through her as the phonemes passed her lips. He relaxed his grip in response and gazed into her eyes, his own brimming with indescribable joy. So elated, Selphie said it again, the sound of it leaving her mind and joining the verbal world thrilled her. Before she uttered it a third time, Irvine pressed his lips against leaving her only at "Irv…"

Selphie closed her eyes as Irvine deepened their kiss. He held her snuggly in his long arms, his hands along her back. It was the most perfect kiss, just like she dreamt it. It was pleasurable, soft yet passionate, and in Selphie's mind the most enjoyable thing she'd ever experienced.

Once their kiss ended, Irvine finally closed the door acknowledging just how cold he was. Selphie couldn't wipe the jubilant expression crafted into her face. Her cheeks began to hurt but she had no other way to show how happy she was. He was here, she remembered his name, and he was HERE!

Irvine turned back around after the closing the door and faced Selphie. Everything about her was the same, from her buoyant hairstyle to her contagious smile. Although, she looked so thin—incredibly thin.

"Selphie, I—I can't believe it's you." He started reaching out to take her hand. Selphie slipped her slender fingers between his and stared into his eyes, not able to make out a word worthy of her feelings.

Irvine's hands felt cool still from the outdoors, but Selphie grasped that much tighter hoping they'd warm in hers. She smiled uncontrollably. Ready to say something, she felt dizzy from the excitement. She opened her mouth to say something, but instead her vision blurred and everything sounded fuzzy. Maybe it was the excitement, maybe it was the overwhelming discovery of Irvine's name in her memory, or maybe it was the fact she'd been starving herself for almost a week—whatever the cause, she heard a gargled version of Irvine's voice before everything went black.

As Selphie's legs collapsed beneath her, Irvine swooped down almost instantly catching her before her head touched the ground. He rested her on her bed and watched. Irvine wasn't trained in first aid and didn't actually know how to handle the situation. Without any other idea, he pulled out a potion and brought it to Selphie's lips. A few drops slid passed her parted lips with no reaction. Irvine exhaled loudly and rested his head into his hands. Before he'd arrived, Selphie was asleep, perhaps she was just tired.

Yes, she was just tired. Irvine raised his head just slightly as he gazed over to Selphie's unconscious body resting less than a foot away. Her chest rose and fell softly with each breath. Despite just having fainted, Selphie appeared so peaceful. Irvine grinned. After all, this was his same Selphie, the very same girl who always appeared at peace and joy, no matter the terrible past she suffered.

Irvine came to his feet and observed Selphie from above. He felt entranced by her rhythmic breathing. With careful observation Irvine noticed something a tad unusual. Selphie always appeared small and thin, but she seemed dramatically thinner and paler. Irvine assumed the pallor came from being locked up in the small cabin in the middle of snow field, but why had she become so frail?

A sick thought passed over Irvine as he imagined the possibility of Selphie's disappearance due to an unsightly illness. Was Selphie a terminal case? Irvine tried to shake the thought out of his head but the risk factors kept piling up. Selphie before she met him lived as a prostitute, who knows what she picked up? Selphie always appeared small for her age and sickly is how she looked now! Plus she did leave suddenly without any real explanation, and she'd just fainted!

Irvine looked around the cabin for a distraction to get his mind off of unconscious Selphie. He explored the other two rooms of the cabin discovering the kitchen. He gazed into the cupboards as another daunting clue piled up in favor of his concerns. The whole kitchen was stocked to the brim with fresh produce and snacks. Unlike Selphie's previous living conditions, this place deemed itself paradise. For what reason could Selphie look like this?

_I've got to stop making up ideas!_ Irvine pounded the fridge in irritation as he exhaled slowly. Once Selphie woke up, he'd confront her and that would end it. He sat down with a snack and awaited Selphie to awaken.

The minutes resisted passing, and an hour felt like a lifetime. Irvine kept chewing on something nervously as he watched Selphie as closely as a hunter stalking its prey. The hours slid by painfully before Selphie stirred and struggled to open her eyes. Irvine jumped to his feet and appeared instantly by her side.

She blinked several times and smiled after meeting eyes with Irvine. "Whew, you're still here— I thought it was all a dream." With a small strain, she pushed herself up to a sitting position. She eyed Irvine's apple armed hand and tilted her head cutely, "Oooh I'm starving."

"Yeah, yeah eat. That's probably best." Irvine replied quickly stepping out of her way. Selphie beamed as she came her feet. After all, she no longer needed to suffer anymore, Irvine was here! She gathered a simple meal and sat herself down. Irvine the whole time watched her, dreading the question he wanted to ask.

Selphie began chopping away relishing the amazing flavor and texture of food in her mouth. Her jaws felt sore from her salivating anticipation to ingest food again. Irvine sat down on the extra chair at the table. Although she peered up from her meal every moment or so, Selphie's thrill seemed to be coming directly from her food.

Irvine rubbed the back of his neck and finally mumbled out, "Selphie, I need to ask you something."

"Go ahead Irvine!" Selphie cheered still relishing saying Irvine's name aloud.

"I uh, I just gotta know— Selphie what happened to you?"

Selphie stopped eating for a moment and stared blankly in response. The question felt loaded, but in a sense, she didn't even understand what he was asking. She kept eye contact with Irvine but said nothing.

"I mean, why did you leave? Why did you go so suddenly?" He expanded.

"Oh, that's what you meant!" Selphie exclaimed. She put down her food and pressed a finger to her chin as she thought. A few moments passed in silence as Irvine watched anxiously fearing her answer. "I guess, it's— oh gosh, Irvine I'm sorry." She bit her lip and turned to Irvine with a guilty look on her face. "I just don't remember."

"What?" Irvine gagged in shock. Of all the answer he concocted in his newly paranoid mind, this was not one of them. In fact, her response sounded something he used to say to a random fling when they asked 'Where did it go wrong?' "Wha— how do you not remember, it was just like a month ago!"

Selphie's face lit up, "A month ago? Really?"

"Selphie, why are ya actin' like this!?" Irvine's voice began to transform into a panicked tone rather rapidly. "Give or take, Selphie it hasn't been long. Why would ya have left us—" he pounded the table trying to keep from yelling at Selphie, "why would ya have left me?"

Almost instantly, Selphie's eyes welled up with a clear film of tears as she began to weep. "I don't know Irvine! I just don't remember! I don't even remember who you are, o-or where we met. I don't really know why we're close… just that we are!"

Irvine came to his feet and grabbed his hat with both hands, gripping the edges tightly. "Ya gotta be kidding me! This is a joke right?"

With a shamed face, Selphie turned away. "I'm telling you the truth Irvine. I didn't even remember your name before—" Not allowing Selphie to finish her statement Irvine rushed to the door. "wait! Where are you going!?" She screamed in horror.

"I need to think, okay?" Irvine muttered exiting the cabin and shutting the door loudly behind him. He pressed his back against the door and slid into a daze, not even noticing the frightening cold winds blowing at him. With his head close to the door, he could hear Selphie sobbing.

His heart twisted in pain hearing her pained weeps. Something didn't fit right, but Selphie seemed innocent enough. He couldn't let her blame herself. Irvine allowed himself a few more moments to himself before reentering the cabin.

Selphie had her back turned to him. She faced an empty fireplace housing only ashes. She sniffled and hiccupped slightly, but otherwise tried to remain quiet.

"Selphie," Irvine started quietly.

"You don't believe me, do you?" She replied quickly. "Irvine, I really don't remember anything, not even how I got here. I know Mr. Devin brought me, I just don't know when or why." She wiped her cheek from tears. "It's okay Irvine, I knew eventually you'd be mad about me not remembering you. I just wish I could do something about it."

Irvine stopped in his tracks, "Eventually? What's that supposed to mean?"

Selphie sighed, "Oh right, those were dreams. Never mind." She kneeled down and continued to face the empty fireplace with such intensity as though flames actually kindled before her.

"Selphie, it's not that I don't believe you— it's just of all things I expected to hear, this is really, and like I mean really unexpected." Irvine slowly came towards her and sat down. He gingerly reached over and intertwined his fingers within Selphie's. Selphie quickly turned her attention to Irvine's hand wrapped within his. "If you really don't remember, then— we'll figure it out. Both of us."

Selphie hesitantly parted her lips, "Are you mad at me Irvine? Are you mad that I don't remember?"

Irvine shined a small grin and released a soft and tired chuckle. With his free hand he patted Selphie's smooth hair. "Sefie, I could never really be mad at you." He gently brought led Selphie's head closer to him as he leaned in as well. Their lips barely met. Irvine could feel Selphie's curving into a smile. He whispered quietly, "I've missed you like hell." They kissed shortly before Selphie leaned over and gazed through the window.

"Oh wow, it's morning!" She stated cheerfully. Irvine's eyes widened as he quickly came to his feet. Outside the window, sure enough were glimpses of light shining through the clouds. The dawn had barely risen, but still morning had come.

"Oh damn, I gotta go." He patted his clothing and shifted his hat firmly onto his hat. "Selphie, I'm sorry, I—I'll be back. I promise." Irvine sighed exasperatedly. Why did he have to leave now? There was so much he hadn't asked, so much he didn't understand—and so much time he'd lost. Selphie gazed back into his eyes lovingly. Her eyes responded strong enough to say 'I understand and I believe you' without a word. They shared a smile and another small kiss.

Irvine rushed to the door. While tipping his hat charmingly towards Selphie, he took his leave.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''

An hour or two later, Irvine arrived back at the Woods Manor. He stumbled passed the early shift of domestics and snuck quietly back into the shared dorm where all the SeeDs except the captains slept. Irvine observed everyone, eyeing for signs of alertness. He looked out the window and saw the sun still rising, shining its golden rays over the white snow landscape outside. Content he'd made it back safely and out of trouble, Irvine tossed himself tiredly onto the lone free bed now claimed as his own.

His eyes closed only for a few minutes, perhaps ten, until a loud interruption of Tag and Baros shot his eyes back open. "Get up ladies!" Tag ordered rudely. The rest of the SeeDs groggily opened their eyes with glares of hatred towards the captains as they slowly and sluggishly rolled out of bed.

Zell rubbed his eyes and stretched his arms as he looked over to Irvine's bed. He blinked in surprise noticing Irvine's reappearance. "Kinneas!" He hissed, suddenly bright eyed and alert. "Kinneas, where the hell were you last night man? You freaked us out with that disappearing act."

A part of Irvine wanted to beam in joy and declare he'd found Selphie, but only a part. The rest of him didn't want to explain that she'd forgotten him and had no answer to why she left Garden. Even though Irvine believed there remained a legitimate reason, he could only imagine the teases and jeers the rest of the troupe would make. "I—uh, kinda got lost." He replied slowly.

"Oh," Zell replied disheartened, "Well uh, glad you're back."

"You mean you're not still mad about Sandrea?" Irvine asked bluntly.  
"Not really, I guess I kind of don't believe it happened. It's better that way. It's Mrs. Woods by the way." Corrected Zell.

Irvine shrugged as he brushed off his uniform and stood up to line up with the rest of the SeeDs. A little more hastened than their initial wake up, the SeeDs quickly dressed and joined Irvine in a line before Tag and Baros.

"Alright, listen up men! You'll be assigned into shifts. Each shift is 12 hours. Meals are every 6 hours. If you're on duty, your meal will be brought to you. If you're off duty, you have your meals in the servant's kitchen. Miss your meal, and it's tough luck for you. When off duty, you may venture the grounds and manor. Don't cause any trouble. If you're late for your shift you're ass is in deep water, everyone clear?"

"Sir!" The unit declared in unison.

"Mrs. Woods organized your shifts. We're to meet her after breakfast. Let's eat and go see her then. Dismissed!"

Irvine knew he needed to listen to the captains prattle on and on about the rules, but all he could do is think of excuses that'd get him out of the manor again. Nothing of substance came to mind. He remained lost in his own head and rather quiet throughout breakfast. Due to Tag and Baros's excessive bragging about dining with the Woods the night before, no one thought anything of Irvine's uncharacteristic silence.

After breakfast, Baros and Tag led the troupe out to the main foyer to receive their orders from Sandrea. She arrived promptly dressed elegantly in a royal blue sweater and white flowing pants with a thick pearls laced around her neck. Her husband walked alongside, their arms interlinked lovingly.

"Good morning gentlemen. I hope you enjoyed yourselves last night." Sandrea began with a bright smile touching her deeply red painted lips. She walked up and down the line of SeeDs, stopping abruptly at Irvine. "I never saw you last night." She commented frankly.

Irvine blinked in surprise of Sandrea's blatant interest. He regained his cool and disciplined appearance and calmly responded, "I was out, Miss—" Irvine slurred a bit as he noticed Mr. Woods looking at him as well, "…us Woods. We did have the night off."

Sandrea stayed silent a moment before politely smiling and looking off, replying casually as she did, "Well I suppose, boys shall be boys."

A part of Irvine wanted to protest to Sandrea's judgment and assumption of how he spent his night, but with another look at Devin, Irvine bit his tongue and remained silent. As Zell would and had preached, 'She's your boss'. If she wanted to act caddy about how he spent his free time away from her not interested in vying for her attention, then let her.

"As your captains have explained to me, you all will be divided into two groups. The captain and one more per shift will be within close proximity at all times. The third will patrol the manor and the grounds, and the last—the sniper will be stationed in our watchtower. From there they can see the entire property." Sandrea gazed over to Irvine, who stood beside Remus, the second sniper. A sly look gleamed in her eye as she challengingly added, "If you two are as good shots as you think, you can strike anyone I so choose from that tower.

Irvine did everything in his power to hold his emotions in. Sandrea's teasing really irritated him—but thoughts of Selphie and returning to her distracted him enough.

"Captain Baros, your team will take the first shift. The rest of you are dismissed." Sandrea walked away gracefully with Devin.

The group of men broke up as the captains began to inform the SeeDs of which team they'd be one. Irvine scowled to himself and walked over to Zell. With a small nudge to get his attention he asked, "What's with Sandrea? Why'd she care where I was last night?"

Not particularly paying attention to Irvine, Zell while facing the captains replied quietly and casually. "Dunno, probably cause' you were the only one who didn't report to her last night. On account of you being 'out' and all. What time did you get back anyways?"

"Never mind that, you gotta help me."  
"Again?" Zell exclaimed exasperated. "I mean come on man; last night was just a wild goose chase. We didn't find anything. What're you even going off of now?"

"I don't need you to do anything, just cover me and help me sneak out of the manor when I'm off shift. Ya can handle that can't ya? You're a smart guy!" Irvine smiled childishly with a small playful shove.

"Dintch, Kinneas, and Loire. You two are with me; our shift starts tonight at 1900. Don't be late." Tag shouted as he slipped back into the corridors.

Zell groaned as he turned his head slowly to Irvine who wore a sly smile. "You're going to try and sneak out right now aren't you?"

With a small nod and tip of his hat, Irvine replied, "I gotta hurry to. Got to get off the grounds before Remus gets to his post. Cover for me okay?" Without waiting for a reply, Irvine rushed away leaving Zell alone in the foyer with the other scattering SeeDs. He zipped away through the corridors and slipped out of the first exit he found.

Although it wasn't a well formulated plan, and he hadn't even thought how he'd be returning into the grounds without getting caught, but he was out of there all the same. Knowing the path to the small cottage, Irvine bypassed the part of where he rented a car knowing that he only had limited money from his first paychecks as SeeD. It took nearly an hour of transit but Irvine made it back to Selphie's little cottage, the sun now high in the sky.

Before Irvine knocked on the door, he paused and thought of what exactly to say to Selphie. The whole morning since he'd left all his concern was to return, but now that he'd arrived what could he possible hope to gain from a very clueless Selphie? Irvine didn't even knock on the door before Selphie opened it enthusiastically greeting him.

"Oh Irvine you're back! So soon! Oh I'm so, so happy!" She hugged him as tightly as she could and led him inside. Since he'd left, little had changed. Selphie started a fire and changed her clothes into a white sweater and looser yellow pants. "Sit down, and warm up! Let's have some breakfast!"

Irvine looked at the table and noticed a plate with toast, bagels and jams laid out with glasses of juice. "How'd you know I'd be back so quickly?" He chuckled.

"Oh I didn't, I just really hoped you would." She giggled and sat herself at the table, gesturing Irvine to take the second seat. Without any hesitation Irvine seated and placed his hat on the table.

They both began to have some breakfast breads before Irvine decided to start his inquires. He dug into his pocket and pulled out a small mesh of silver chain and laid it before Selphie. Before he could explain or question what it was or if Selphie recollected it, his answer was partially given.

Selphie's eyes glittered with joy as she gazed at the shimmering accessory. She carefully lifted the chain of the table and observed the dancing silver pendant now dangling in the air. "Where did you find this? I mean, how do you have this?"

"It's yours, you left it in Balamb." Irvine replied slowly carefully observing Selphie's expressions.

"Balamb…" Selphie whispered, her attention still focused on the necklace. "Oh Irvine, this is mine. I know this, it's the one nice thing I owned, back when I lived on the streets. I found in a jewelry box at Mr. Devin's home. I've kept it ever since, but I kind of didn't notice it was gone." She put the necklace down and turned back to Irvine. "What does this mean?"

"It just means you don't remember leaving it Balamb. You left it with a goodbye note." Irvine explained.

"Maybe I left it so you had something to remember me by!" Selphie exclaimed happily. "If I did, then—" she handed the necklace back to Irvine, "then I want you to keep it."

"It probably looks a lot better on you." Irvine laughed.  
"But it's the only thing I have to give you, and I don't want you to forget me ever. I wish I hadn't forgot you, even for a moment. I kind of never did, I dreamt about you every night."

Irvine let Selphie's words sink in. A forget me not, if only he knew Selphie would disappear he'd never let her go. He would never forget her. Still, if only Selphie had something to remember him by, just to hold on to the memories. He squeezed the necklace in his hand and placed it back in his pocket. "I'll keep it forever then." With a grin on his face Irvine picked up his hat and placed atop Selphie's unusual hairstyle. "Now ya got something to remember me by. It's my favorite hat, I never go anywhere without it."

Selphie beamed, even in her dreams, Irvine always appeared with his signature black cowboy hat. She reveled at the material resting on her crown as she slid her fingers against the rims. "Oh I love it!"

The two finished their breakfast and Selphie happily picked up the dishes and placed them in the sink. Irvine came behind and fetched a glass of water. As he poured the contents down his throat, he gave a slight shudder. Chuckling he said, "Whoa, no one ever needs ice with pipes cold as these."

Selphie giggled as she poured some water for herself. She took a gulp and cried out as the icy cold water slipped down passed her tongue. She dropped the glass letting shattered on the tile floor of the kitchen.

_Selphie remained on the floor, her insides burning from the intense cold of the drink. Her vision cleared and blurred as tears fell and formed. She tried to think of something else, anything but Garden. Her mind could only center on her friends, her classes— and of course Irvine. _

"You okay?" Irvine responded immediately stepping away from the broken glass on the floor.

"It'll make me forget." Selphie whispered.  
"The water? It's just water, Sefie. See? I'm drinking it."  
"No! You don't understand! I drank something and it made me forget. I don't remember what it was or what it looked like, it just, it was cold and—"

Irvine placed his hands on Selphie's shoulders. "Hey, it's okay. You got my hat remember? You can't forget me now. Plus, this is just water." Irvine handed Selphie's glass as she hesitantly brought it to her lips and sipped. The water had warmed slightly being in Irvine's grip, but its cool temperature sneaking down her throat still made her uneasy.

The two cleaned up the mess of water of glass on the floor and sat themselves on the bed. Selphie laid down and Irvine next to her. "Irvine," She started softly.

"Yeah?"  
"Tell me everything, tell me about how we met. I want to remember I want to remember so badly! If those memories were anything like those dreams I had, then it must've been the best time of my life!"

Irvine exhaled slowly as he turned his head to meet Selphie's eyes. There were many things he didn't want to tell Selphie. He preferred to leave out why he brought Selphie to Balamb in the first place. If it was his world, Nida would never have met Selphie. In his realm, Selphie would never had that bizarre monsters attack.

Then again, if he could jog her memory, maybe she could remember why and how she left Balamb.

"Well, I guess it started here in Trabia." Irvine started slowly thinking back to that day when Rinoa ice skated angelically for Seifer and him while they stood as very bored and non-entertained audience. "I had a bet, with my friend's boyfriend that I could go and get one of the ladies at the fountain to hang with me without paying."

"That sounds pretty easy." Selphie replied frankly.  
"Really?" Irvine asked surprised given his limited experience with prostitutes.  
"Yeah, a lot of guys didn't pay. It made the ladies really mad though."  
"Heh, that's not exactly what I meant. I mean, well that they wouldn't ask me to pay."  
"Ooh, yeah that's kinda harder to do."

Irvine laughed as he closed his eyes and envisioned snowy town square. The women in their flashy clothing flaunting themselves at him and for his attention and business. They pressed themselves against him, and flirted with advertisements of their own appraisal. They fiddled with his clothing, whispered enticing offers in his ear. If he stood still long enough, most of them would have probably started their acts right there on the street.

Amongst the group of desperate women throwing themselves at him, there sat a girl beyond them on fountain. He couldn't see her face, but only saw her small stature and the funniest stance of chestnut hair. He stuck his hand out and chose her instantly. A part of him always enjoyed a challenge, and someone who didn't seem even remotely interested intrigued him.

"And the girl I was with was you. You were different from the other ladies, really honest, and sincere. Something I guess, I wished I was more like. I had so much fun. I almost kissed you that night, but I just couldn't. I didn't want to trick you, I just couldn't. So what I lost the bet? After I went back to Balamb, I couldn't stop thinking about you."

Selphie smiled dreamily, "Really?"

"Yeah, you have that effect on people Sefie" Irvine leaned over and kissed Selphie gently on the lips. "How about we leave the story there for now?"

"But you just started!" Selphie protested.

Irvine sighed, he didn't really enjoy the Trabian parts of this tale. "How's this? I'll tell you another story. The time we danced together at a ball."

Selphie's eyes lit up with wonder and joy. "A ball? With music and dancing and everything?" She clasped her hands together and nodded her head energetically. "Yeah, yeah let's hear that one!"

A smile touched Irvine's lips as he began to reminisce about the day he made SeeD. "Well I was there in the ballroom, it was all lit up and decorated, cause' you and I had spent a lot of time decorating it." He glanced over to Selphie and saw her face fall in surprise as though he told her he was Hyne reincarnated. He held back a chuckle and kept talking, "I was there with some girl, but I wanted to be with you, but someone else asked you out first. But—when you came in, you looked like an angel. You were dressed in all silver, in a long dress, you looked—" Irvine almost lost his breath just remembering the image of Selphie in her light flowing gown descending the stairs of the ballroom, "you looked so beautiful."

"I left the girl I was with and ran to you and the first thing I told ya was how beautiful you looked. Then I asked you to dance. You were real nervous, but it was so much fun to be with ya on the dance floor."

Selphie sighed, "I don't remember any of that. But it sounds so wonderful." Her face fell and she turned away, saddened.

"Let's dance, maybe you'll remember." Irvine came to his feet and held out a hand towards Selphie. She looked at it curiously before she hesitantly placed her hand in his. Irvine swiftly brought Selphie to her feet and placed one hand on her waist and clasped the other with her hand. Even though Selphie couldn't hear the music in his head, Irvine led the two as they danced across the empty space in the middle of the cottage.

Selphie laughed in joy as Irvine twirled her about. Finally came the finale of the dance where Irvine lifted her into the air, and just like the first time they danced, Selphie clutched Irvine's shoulders in fear. Once he brought her back to earth, they stepped in, stepped out, and Irvine finished the dance with dipping Selphie. "Anything?" He asked.

With an exasperated groan Selphie shook her head. "Nope."  
"Don't worry, we're together and even if you don't remember our old memories. We'll make new ones."

Irvine and Selphie's eyes met as they exchanged kind smiles.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Sandrea sat at her vanity brushing her soft curls carefully as to not unfurl her locks. In the same room, but nearer to the exit, stood Seifer. Sandrea glanced in her mirror and was able to make visual of Seifer. While like the rest of her body guards he was a handsome young man, she didn't much care to approach him. He didn't seem her type anyways.

The door opened and Devin entered the large suite. Also much like Seifer, Devin didn't make a commotion upon seeing Sandrea. "A little privacy please." She said softly implicating for Seifer to step out while Devin was in the room. After he'd exited, Sandrea looked back to Devin who had completely ignored her.

"You could pretend to be happy to see me Devin." She scoffed irritably.

"I'm very happy you're here." He replied blandly still not even turning towards her direction since he'd arrived in the room. He sat down at a small desk and shuffled through the papers stacked on it. "These are all yours I presume."

Sandrea came to her feet and snatched the papers in his hand. "Yes! They're all for here, I'm throwing a social gathering while I'm here. These are my preliminary plans."

"Of course, if it's not a not a photo opp, it's some other nuisance you bring. Well carry on, I have no care for your little shenanigans whatsoever." Devin returned to his feet and looked to the exit.

"My little shenanigans? I'll have you know I'm doing my best to continue our public relations Devin! My work is very important." Devin made no response to her. "FINE! I don't care what you think, just go and be there for the party!"

After Devin made a quiet exit, Sandrea felt enraged. Devin's blatant disregard for her and her functions was normal enough but a part of her never felt ready to be truly ignored. After all, wherever she went she was a celebrity. She was accustomed by being adored by all.

Sandrea returned to her vanity and checked her face. After she was sure she was perfect she stepped out of the room. "Let's go check up on your fellow teammates, shall we?" She said to Seifer and Baros who were stationed to be close to her at all times. Sandrea's frustration had gotten the best of her, and what better way to fight being ignored than to be adored?

At all times, four SeeDs were stationed at various distances. One in the room with her, one in the hallway next to the room, one patrolling the occupied wing of the building, and lastly a sniper watching the grounds. Although it seemed excessive, Sandrea never felt safe in Trabia, and more importantly she never felt safe with Devin's staff. The whole lot of them didn't seem to like her, and why trust a group of people who didn't like her to protect her?

As Sandrea walked down the hall, she stopped at a mirror hanging on the wall and double checked her image in its reflection. She smiled pleased with her appearance. With a small toss of her head, her cheek length, soft curls fell back behind her ears.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

All her life, Sandrea Wood's beauty carried her place to place. Growing up in Galbadia in a moderately wealthy family of entrepreneurs, everyone always believed she'd do well in life. Her parents always thought Sandrea would marry well and help them escalate into international elite circles.

Sandrea became accustomed to hearing how beautiful she was, and how it'd do her well to ensure she remained that way. Her mother rose to her to be a socialite, rubbing elbows with some of the highest people in Deling City. Sandrea felt like life would fall into place perfectly, as perfect as her face.

When Sandrea was still in her young 20's, fresh out of school, her parents introduced her to Devin. Unlike her many boyfriends of the past, Devin Woods was a suitor. Both of their families wanted to them to wed eventually. Sandrea still remembered the day she met the handsome heir to Woods fortune. He, like all men around Sandrea, became entranced by her beauty and fell for them hastily.

Devin courted her for a few months, and the two very quickly rose up the social ladder becoming the most interesting couple in the world. After their couple month courtship, Devin, in accordance to both of their parents wishes, proposed to Sandrea. After marrying into the Woods family, Sandrea realized just how her infamous beauty had done her well.

Not even royalty could live the way she did. After marriage, life was truly a fairytale as the two of them traveled the world being adored and followed by paparazzi and spectators internationally. Sandrea couldn't be happier, her new husband was enamored with her, and she lived a carefree life, and lived in the luxury of a princess.

Unfortunately, after a few years of their very easy going life, Devin's father began to insist he take more responsibility of their business. Sandrea had to make a permanent move to Trabia. From the first day of her arrival to Trabia, she hated it. She hated the beggars who'd approach her, she despised the cold weather, she abhorred the frightening threat of crime around every corner, and she resented the lack of social interest.

Still happy with her marriage, Sandrea tried to make the best of her time in Trabia, however her mind always drifted off to planning trips and vacations. She always pleaded with Devin to leave with her anywhere that wasn't within the range of the Trabian borders. Despite his growing workload, Devin still wanted to keep his beautiful wife happy. He humored her as much as time allowed.

Years went by and Sandrea's resentment for Trabia only grew. At the same time, the beauty that once captivated her husband had lost its appeal. She'd become a lackluster collectable in his mansion. Sandrea knew she was too young and far too beautiful to be ignored already. With or without Devin in arm, she continued her travels and continued to be the eye and icon of the lifestyle of the rich and famous.

This method of marriage only lasted so long before Devin and Sandrea came to realize they both lost their affections for each other. They came together to file for divorce, but a blockade stopped them. Devin's father stood firm that the two of them could not separate. In his eyes, Woods Inc. had only grown through Sandrea and Devin's exposure to heavy paparazzi. He demanded the two continued to appear as loving and as happy as before. If they didn't agree to his extreme, he'd punish them. Whoever denied him and disgraced their marriage would be cut off from the family fortune and disowned with the other inheriting everything. It was then Sandrea and Devin learned how insistent Devin's father was about them staying together.

With the heavy condition placed on them, they decided to at least to try to find happiness with each other again. Sandrea tried to remain in Trabia more often, Devin attempted to travel more. Within a short time, the two gave up their ideal selves and returned to their own habits. Convinced that this was a disgrace on their marriage, Sandrea went to her father in-law and stated Devin no longer seemed committed to their relationship, giving a viable reason for divorce. Her father in-law did not receive her well, and in response to her complaint he stated she needed to act more like a wife, and if she ever returned to him with such a trivial problem, he'd award Devin everything.

Sandrea hated her livelihood. She decided no matter what her father in-law threatened, she was leaving her husband. She was a beautiful young woman wasting her prime years in a loveless, dead end marriage. Sandrea traveled to Galbadia to tell her family about her decision when she discovered the family had gone bankrupt. Her parents, siblings, and extended family once happily living on the edge of the upper class had fallen to the verge of homelessness. While the Woods industry rode on the coattails of the couple's popularity, Sandrea's family's business suffered to the expanding Woods' company.

Powerless to even help her family, Sandrea realized how much she'd come love the life she lived. She couldn't live in her old ways, and she definitely couldn't live the way her family did now. Sandrea decided to live and make due with life, loveless and all.

On one of her trips, Sandrea began to finally succumb to the attention a woman of her beauty and stature received. After being defeated and forced into the place she was, Sandrea fell victim to charms of another man. With only a feeble attempt to fight it, Sandrea found herself facing adultery.

With her unfaithfulness, Sandrea's guilt burned her inside and out. She ended her affair and rushed to Devin's side. She tried her best to act as a good and happy wife. However, Devin didn't care or notice her affection. His work consumed him and left no time for his wife whose only appeal had long faded in his eyes.

After trying to reconcile her guilt, Sandrea realized, Devin really did not care. Since her father in-law did not count apathy as disgracing their marriage, Sandrea decided to let herself enjoy life in her own method, secret affairs. Spending most of her time traveling made it easy to hide any and all relationships.

Even though she knew she was already breaking the accord with Devin's father, Sandrea remained determined to maintain her lifestyle. The only way to promise this was to catch Devin doing the same thing. From then on, she kept close tabs on everything about Devin. She watched his bank statements, any business trips he took, anything that could be proof of an affair. Nothing ever appeared though, despite her attempts to catch him.

With her new added dedication to gain the company and family industry, Sandrea decided to actually work for the company's public appeal rather than rely solely on her increasing popularity. Between spying on Devin and hiding her own affairs, she hosted charity events, expanded her and Devin's image, and held social events for the elites of the world. She tried showing Devin how significant her contributions were, but he never appeared impressed.

With all her time traveling, Sandrea never could tell if Devin hid anything, she felt confident that he couldn't live his life celibate, but his work did seem more important than anything else.

After years of living the way they did, Devin's father passed away. Sandrea and Devin finally believed they could have the divorce they both desperately wanted with a dignified amount of wealth. However, even in death, Devin's father kept the two in matrimony. His will stated that if the two broke their vows to him, they'd both receive nothing and the family industry and its shares would be split and given to the extended Woods family.

Until their deaths, they were both bound by Devin's late father's wishes. However, Sandrea had found peace and happiness the way she lived. She did still pay special attention to Devin's expenses, but had become content with small secret relationships and her social work ethic.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Sandrea passed through the corridors calmly. Captain Alexston and Seifer followed behind in silence. When they passed the last member of the shift, Nida, he too joined them. With three bodyguards at her side, she could see a difference in the way the staff approached and looked at her. They appeared frightened, threatened even. Sandrea felt pleased with herself. Even if the help had the gall to try and do something to her, they'd stop at the sight of her small private army.

At the manor in Trabia, the staff had been in employment long before Sandrea even married Devin, and therefore had natural loyalty to him and his family. Due to Sandrea's absence, the staff seemed rather cold and uncaring towards her. In the estates scattered throughout the world that Sandrea normally lived in, she'd chosen the domestics personally, and they respected her.

The four of them started their search in the servants' dining room. The captain of the next shift, Tag, sat there alone. He saluted Sandrea upon seeing her, but was unable to tell them where the rest of his shift was currently. Unpleased, Sandrea continued through the large house passing grand room to grand room.

They came across the library where they spotted another SeeD, Zell. Zell had gathered a good stack of books and sat himself at a chair close to the entrance. When Sandrea approached him, he seemed enthralled and deeply engrossed with his book.

"Ahem." Sandrea said softly, gathering Zell's attention. In response, Zell slowly reluctantly looked away from his book and noticed Sandrea standing with her group of SeeDs. "Hello there, Zell." She added with a smile.

Zell leapt to his feet and hastily saluted. "Mrs. Woods!" After standing in a straight position, he noticed in his rapidness he'd dropped one the lovely bounded books onto the floor. He stared nervously at the literature, unsure whether or not to move from position to grab it.

"Relax, I was just curious how you boys would bide your time here. I see you're being rather productive." Sandrea knelt down with poise and grasped the book. She carefully handed it back to Zell, still smiling her large bright red lips at him. "Where are the rest of your comrades?"

Zell nodded nervously. "Squall is outside ma'am, he's out training."

"Another productive member, my, my, Cid wasn't understating you all. I am impressed." Sandrea turned her head and looked around the library, "Where may I ask are the others?"

"I think Captain Soma is eating." Zell replied promptly.  
"Yes I knew about that one. You are an informed one, aren't you?"  
"Yes ma'am, I try to be."  
"Well then, do you know where Irvine is then?"

A look of apprehension crossed Zell's face. A small drop of perspiration even formed at the top of his long black tattoo. Zell hoped the day would go by without him needing to actually cover for Irvine, but now that an opportunity had come— "He's sleeping."

"Sleeping?" Sandrea repeated doubtfully.  
"Yes ma'am, he did have a late night and all. Plus our shift is all night. You understand."  
"Yes, of course. Thank you, Zell, you've been quite helpful."

Without another word, Sandrea swiftly turned around and left the library with only the echoing sounds of her heeled shoes against the marble floor to be heard.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine spent a few more hours recalling previous moments with Selphie and narrating them to her with as much detail as he could. Selphie sat at his side and listened to him talk on and on, taking in every word he said. For a bit, he became thought that even if he threw in some outlandish characters into his stories, like a fairy, Selphie would believe him.

After lunchtime passed, Irvine's full stomach reached his mind and induced drowsiness. Irvine recalled he hadn't slept at all for the past night, and he wouldn't be able to later tonight. He thought about returning back to the manor to get some rest, but Selphie pleaded him to stay. The two laid down together and fell into the comfortable slumber of a daytime nap.

Hours later, Irvine woke up and learned the time for him to return back to the manor regardless had come.

"But Irvine, I don't want you to leave." Selphie said softly, almost childishly.

Irvine smiled at his petite girl and lifted her sunken head. "Hey, hey. I'll be back tomorrow, I promise."

Selphie looked up at him innocently, "You promise?"  
"I came back today didn't I?" He added with a smile.  
"That's true. I just— I just wish you never had to leave. Tomorrow you'll have to go too."  
"Course' Selphie, I came here for work. But like I said, I'll come see ya as often as I can."

Selphie still had an unhappy expression on her face, but she nodded compliantly, trying not to be too troublesome for Irvine. After all, she didn't want to chase him away with her attachment. She forced a grin and looked up hopefully. "I can't wait till tomorrow then!"

Instantly upon seeing Selphie's smile, Irvine mimicked her expression with a smirk of his own. "Hey, tomorrow I'm going to tell you the story about our first kiss." Irvine watched Selphie's face turn red in reply as her smile twisted into a slightly bashful look. "Spoiler, it ends like this—" Irvine smoothly wrapped his arms around Selphie and brought her in closely. Selphie gazed upward to meet Irvine's eyes as his head towered over hers. With his grip around her he slowly lifted her off her feet and bringing her head as close to him and finally kissing her lips. "I'll see ya tomorrow." He whispered as their lips just barely parted.

A part of Irvine wanted to ask Selphie right then and there to leave Trabia with him and return to Garden— but even with all his conventional impulsive behavior, he knew it was a futile idea to even bring it up. He himself had just arrived to Trabia for a mission, and until an end date was set, talking to Selphie about it seemed useless.

Talking to Selphie about coming home with him occupied his mind most of the trip back to the manor. As soon as he'd arrived in the vicinity of the grounds, he began worrying about how to pass Remus. If he snitched on him and told Sandrea that he'd snuck out for the day, he might be in trouble. Might being the optimum word, after all, Sandrea was smitten with him.

Irvine scaled the walls of the ground's gate, nervous to climb over. Remus could shoot him, but he doubted his ability of a sniper. Regardless, every sniper suffered from blind spots. There just had to be one here as well. He kept walking around the perimeter and look over the top every once and awhile.

Eventually he came across Squall who was having a one man scrimmage out in the empty grounds. _Perfect! Just what I needed! _"HEY SQUALL!" Irvine shouted from over the fence. Squall slowly stopped swatting his sword and turned around to see Irvine ducking behind the property line. "Squall, man this is just perfect! I thought Remus was going to shoot me! Just walk with me casually back to the manor. Our shift is about to start."

Squall looked at Irvine with a bored expression and finally shrugged. He came close enough to Irvine to block view of him from Remus' location. Irvine swung himself over the property fence and stood by Squall calmly. "Great! Now we gotta get back to the house, thanks man!" Squall still made no reply.

The two of them returned into the mansion and met with the rest of their team. Zell looked angry when he met eyes with Irvine, but had no time to express his feelings as Mrs. Woods showed up only moments later.

"Oh how punctual, I forget how wonderful it is to have good help." Sandrea greeted as she swept into the foyer in long fashionable dress. Her makeup was reapplied; her short curled hair was freshly styled. "Well gentlemen you all know your posts." Sandrea clapped her hands signaling she was dismissing the SeeDs.

Irvine immediately left the scuttle of teammates surrounding Sandrea as their job was to be near her. He left back into the cold for the watch tower. As began walking up the stairs to the top where he presumed his place would be, he crossed Remus. Remus looked bored and tired, ready to have the night to himself.

"Hey Remus!" Irvine greeted cheerfully.  
"Hi." Remus replied dully.  
"Ya know, you look exhausted!"  
"Just a little tired. There's really nothing there— all day. Anyways, it's finally time for some grub."

Remus began to walk away leaving Irvine a little anxious. He couldn't afford another close like today, and if he wanted to leave and see Selphie again, which he did, he needed to make sure coming and going wasn't an issue. He turned around quickly and grasped Remus by the shoulder. "Hey uh, I kinda need a favor."

To respond, Remus glanced at him questionably. "What kind of favor?"  
"Hey, hey, hey. No need to get so testy, I just thought it'd be nice if you got to get off 30 minutes early. You know, you're going to miss the meal right now."

"What?" Remus nearly gagged, grasping at his empty stomach.  
"You know if you're late for meals you miss it, and since you're all the way out here you'll probably miss it every night. Too bad for you. I thought I'd help you out and let me take your shift half an hour early."

"What's in it for you?"

"Nothing, just want to start early. Plus I'll be on time to get my dinner right here. So we both win." Irvine smiled his cunning smile, proven to even soothe men. Remus seemed uneasy but Irvine made a good point about meals, plus he seemed so friendly it felt hard to deny him.

"Fine Kinneas. But you're not using this room—to hook up or anything are you? I kind of heard things about you."

Irvine chuckled, "O'course not! That'd be nuts! It's all about the dinner. Just leave your post half and hour early, I'll come a few minutes later. So no catches us you know." Irvine's plan seemed very half hatched, and Remus seemed to catch on to that. To quickly amend, Irvine added, "You better hurry, maybe someone is about throwing their leftovers away, and you might want to catch um'." Remus nodded desperately and rushed away giving no more arguments.

It wasn't full proof, but may buy him a day or two. Irvine felt content and continued all the way to top of the watch tower. The room at the top was a well room that felt cold drafty. The walls were glass, but easily able to be opened at anytime allowing a slight chill to slither across. Other than great view of the manor, Remus hadn't oversold the boredom to be had.

Lying in a stand beside of the many glass walls rested one the most expensive guns Irvine had ever heard of. It was state of the art, with a high focus scope, absence of kick, and the furthest range of all guns on the market. Irvine's lips twisted in a jubilant smile as he picked up the gun carefully stroking its strong smooth steel.

"I see you've found your way with no problem."

Irvine set the gun down and turned around to see Sandrea leaning against the frame of the doorway. He stood straight and saluted. "Evening Mrs. Woods."

"Back to all that formality!" Sandrea flailed her hands out dramatically. "We're alone Irvine, I think we've reached a first name basis relationship." She winked playfully entering the room slowly.

Irvine relaxed his stance and turned away with a lack of interest. "You made your point pretty clearly when we came Mrs. Woods."

"Still sore about that! Oh Irvine, learn to let those things go." Sandrea appeared behind Irvine. She laced her arms around his neck, tenderly stroking his chest. "I know I have." She whispered.

Irvine removed Sandrea's hands gently and turned around with an uneasy look. "Mrs. Woods—"

"Sandrea!"  
"Okay, Sandrea. Excuse me for being confused, I mean—I saw you with your husband."  
"I didn't come up here to be judged by the likes of you, Irvine." Sandrea interrupted snappily.  
"Sorry, you're my boss. I think we should leave it at that." Irvine held out his hands defensively.

Sandrea shuffled to a nearby chair. She sat herself sat and crossed her legs leisurely. "Well, well, look who's had a change of heart. It's almost as if—" Sandrea stopped her vocal thinking and noticed Irvine's signature hat missing. "Why Irvine, are you seeing someone else?"

Irvine ducked his head back and chuckled. "That's none of your business. I mean— it's just on our way here we're were still kinda in transit. Now that we're here, you said it's all business. I'm just trying to respect that."

"Well I changed my mind. I order you to do the same." Sandrea came to her feet and stepped towards Irvine, gently placing a hand on his cheek. She pressed her lips softly against his face and whispered into his ear, "You can't deny we had a great deal of fun."

"The rest of the group— aren't they watching you?" Irvine quickly stated, his arms still at his side not replying to Sandrea's advances.

"I'm with a guard right now anyways, I just told them to wait for me back at the manor. You don't have to worry about a thing." Sandrea glanced over to Irvine's still hesitant face. "Unless, of course, you just don't want to." With that, she moved her lips over Irvine's placed a shallow kiss, waiting for Irvine to reply.

Irvine breathed out calmly. Images of Selphie swirled through his mind. He imagined her smiling goodbye with him, he reminisced about their thoughtful kiss goodbye, he longed to return to her small cottage and sweep her away.

"Mrs. Woods." Irvine took Sandrea's hands into his and placed them back to her side. "I'm sorry. I— just can't."

Sandrea stepped back instantly. She threw a dirty look towards him with her hands fisted at her sides. "Taking the high road are you? I'm not fooled, I know what game you're playing." She spun on her heels and turned to the door. "I hope you know having an illicit relationship with any other employees is strictly forbidden!" Without another word, she stormed out.

Irvine exhaled loudly; glad the awkward event was over. He slid into a chair and ran a hand through his hair, unaccustomed to the lack of a hat on his head. Sandrea's advance towards him certainly surprised him, but it put his questionings about her and her husband to rest. He wondered if Mr. Woods was aware of Sandrea's lifestyle. Despite his newly formed questions, Mrs. Woods left his mind quickly as he started to think of Selphie again.

For the next week, things went smoothly by as Irvine snuck out of the manor right after his shift, before Remus even reached the watchtower. He spent his day with Selphie, eating, sleeping, and reminiscing about the days Selphie had forgotten. He left at a proper time making it back half an hour before his shift entering the grounds while it remained unguarded.

Unfortunately, despite the time Irvine spent with Selphie, her memory hadn't returned quite as well as he'd hoped. After thoroughly describing events, Selphie could make up the memory in her mind and sometimes even recollect parts of the scene on her own. It slightly bothered him, but Irvine remained steadfast and loyal to spending any as much time as he could with Selphie.

Irvine rushed out of the exit of the watchtower into the brisk cold of the day. He scouted around to see if Remus had arrived yet. Not able to spot his familiar face from the direction of the manor, Irvine smiled content and pressed forward through the grounds. With him having left the tower, and Remus not having arrived yet, the grounds were free of supervision.

As Irvine crossed the fields, still with discretion, he heard a soft sound behind him, similar to treading through snow. He slipped closely to a wall and gazed to his passed tracks. From his angle he couldn't see anyone, but he did notice an extra set of footprints near his passed track in the snow. Irvine raised an eyebrow curiously, was someone following him?

He stepped out from the cover of the wall and walked out further. After stepping into a clearing, he turned his head and looked around. As far as he could tell, no one was behind him, granted, the grounds had several bushes and statues scattered about providing places to hide. "Two can play that game." Irvine uttered sneakily. He walked casually forward and then suddenly disappeared behind another statue passed the clearing. He slid from sight and waited. A few minutes later he heard exasperated panting, followed by seeing a young lady in a maid's uniform appeared before him.

She turned her head frantically side to side while rubbing her arms madly. She blew into her hands and stomped angrily. "Where the heck did he go!" She looked around again, completely unable to see Irvine, well hidden behind her. "Why didn't he just go inside! I don't have my coat; I'm so cold out here!"

Irvine clicked his tongue satisfied. That was all the proof he needed. He slid out from his hiding place and silently approached the maid with her back turned. Within a fraction of a second he reached one arm around her waist including her one her arms and covered her mouth with the other arm.

The maid released a muffled scream and tugged at Irvine's hand with her free arm. She kicked and flailed, but Irvine kept a firm grip around her. He stepped back, dragging the maid with him and pushed her against a stone bench. The maid fell clumsily onto the hard cold rock. She looked up at Irvine, her eyes frozen in fear.

Irvine planted his feet firmly as he faced the maid with a stern look. "Alright, why are ya following me?"

"I was told too! The missus told me to find out if you were dating one the staff." The maid answered immediately.

"Sa— I mean, Mrs. Woods told you to follow me?" Irvine repeated. The maid nodded rapidly. "You're telling me this pretty easily, why?"

The maid shrugged slowly, still hesitant to relax. "No one really likes the missus. She asked me to find out where you go off too after your shift. She never said I had to keep it a secret. Now can I get out of here? It's really cold!"

Irvine shrugged nonchalantly. "Fine, but before ya do, follow me to the dorm so you can tell Mrs. Woods that's where I went." The maid nodded and the two walked back to the manor in silence and stopped in the servant's quarters. Right before entering the room where the SeeDs stayed, the maid stopped.

"Listen, I didn't care about what the missus said, but don't think she won't find someone who does. We might not like here, but she's the still the boss's wife. So whatever it is you did to make her think something's off about you, I'd fix it. She pretty much gets her way whenever she's here. Even Mr. Woods doesn't say no to her." With that, the maid turned around and left.

Irvine watched until the maid was out of sight and reluctantly entered the large room shared amongst the SeeDs. The only SeeD inside was Zell, lying down comfortably on his bed with a Combat King in his hand. He gazed over his cover noticing Irvine.

"Hey man, what're you doing here? Shouldn't you be looking for Selphie?"

With a sigh Irvine sat down on the bed next to Zell's. "I think Sandrea is on to me about leaving the manor."

"It's Mrs. Woods." Zell correctly, gritting his teeth.  
"Who cares?" Irvine responded in a bored monotonous voice.  
"Yeah, can't say I'm surprised."  
"What?"  
"Well you're never here, and Mrs. Woods asks me where you are whenever she sees me. That's why I try to avoid her in here. I'm not exactly a good liar."

Irvine shook his head, "Zell, Sandrea looks for me while I'm gone!? Why didn't you tell me?"

"What's with you man?" Zell placed his book down and propped himself up by his elbows. "She doesn't look for you specifically, she checks up on everyone. Anyways, I already told you I don't like covering for you."

"Ya coulda told me why!" Irvine snapped. "No wonder she's on to me. What do you say I'm doing all the time?"

"Sleeping— it makes the most sense." Zell replied, still rather calm.  
"You know, for someone who doesn't want me to get us all in trouble you're pretty chill about this all!"

Zell exhaled loudly and came to his feet. He stood up and calmly walked away, his back turned to Irvine. "You know, I didn't want to have say this, but you've been looking for Selphie with no leads for a week. Do you seriously think you're going to find her?"

Irvine stormed to his feet angrily, "I did find her!"  
"Freakin' hell!" Zell shouted in shock, "Why didn't you tell me, man!?"

"It's like this— it's complicated." Irvine started slowly.  
"Uh-huh." Zell edged on.

Irvine rubbed the back of his neck and thought for a moment. "Zell, have ya ever heard of some drink that could make you forget stuff? Like anything?"

Zell shook his head, "Not that I've heard of. Why?"

"Well, Selphie— she doesn't remember a lot about Garden, or any of us. She remembers me but she doesn't know why. Like how we met or anything. She can't even remember why she left Garden, well—for that matter, she doesn't remember ever being at Garden. But on the first day I saw her, she drank some cold water and she freaked out thinking it'd make her forget."

Zell nodded his head in contemplation, "I don't know, man. I've never heard of anything like that, but I'll look into it. So is Selphie okay?"

"Yeah, I guess. I mean she's a little skinny, but she's fine for the most part. She's staying at a pretty nice place and all. She just can't tell me how she got there, she just doesn't remember anything passed being there."

"Hmm, that's kind of weird. I'll see what I can find. In the meantime, maybe it's best you don't go see Selphie. I mean I don't you must be real excited to go hang out with her, but Mrs. Woods is suspicious. Maybe spend some time around here for a couple of days."

"Yeah I guess I should—but Selphie's waiting for me."  
"Just show Mrs. Woods you're around here, it'll throw her off the trail. Hey I want you to go see Selphie; I mean I was worried about her too. Just remember, we can't get in trouble."

Zell left the quarters without another word leaving Irvine to his thoughts. Irvine knew that Sandrea didn't know or care whether or not he was leaving the manor. What she did care about however was the possibility of Irvine dating someone. Sandrea clearly wasn't taking Irvine's dismissal well. Unfortunately, she had a point. When Selphie seemed attainable Irvine seemed willing to be Sandrea's play thing, but now that Selphie had returned into his life he suddenly decided to stick to his morals.

"Throw off her trail; I guess I could do that." Irvine smiled slyly. All he had to do was prove to Sandrea that not being with her was a choice of his job, not his personal desire. As per Zell's advice, Irvine spent the rest of the day at the manor begrudgingly.

The next day, he planned on convincing Sandrea that there was nothing going on. A little after breakfast, Irvine left the servant's quarters and rushed towards the foyer. Already on guard there stood Seifer, gunblade in hand, pacing the halls. Clearly Sandrea must be nearby. "Hey Seifer."

"Go away Sniper Slut." Seifer replied casually.  
"I need your help."  
"You owe me 1500 gil. We'll talk when you have that."  
"Seifer!" Irvine hissed angrily finally.

Seifer groaned and turned his head lazily towards Irvine. "You got one minute of my attention, Kinneas."

"Where's San— Mrs. Woods." Irvine asked slowly carefully correcting himself.  
"In her room upstairs, probably sitting in front of her mirror."  
"Where's her room?"  
"Why the hell should I tell you that?"  
"It's like really important. She thinks I'm sneaking out of the manor."  
"You are sneaking out of the manor."  
"She can't know that!"

Irvine and Seifer silenced abruptly as they gazed upwards in response to a sound they heard. Nida appeared at the top of the stairs, approaching Seifer. "We're trading places. Captain wants you to watch the hall outside of Mrs. Woods room."

Seifer exhaled loudly realizing Irvine now would follow him and receive his answer. Irvine however, had a different plan. "Seifer, tell me where her room is and then take off for like 10 minutes."

"Seriously, why the hell do you I think I'm going to listen to you?" Seifer responded in a very angry whisper.  
"I really need you to help me out here. Plus, think of all the jokes you can make at Nida while waiting!" Irvine responded desperately.

"I do like that."  
"All settled then, just take your time getting back. When you get up there, make some noise okay? Just trip or drop a vase." Irvine patted Seifer's shoulder in a friendly like manor, despite Seifer's dark glare darting at him. Seifer begrudgingly told Irvine where Sandrea's room was, and he was off!

Stationed right outside the grand doors of Sandrea's suite stood Captain Alexston. He eyed Irvine curiously, not having ever spoken with him much. "What're you doing here?" He asked bluntly. Irvine saluted half heartedly and smiled casually.

"I heard Mrs. Woods never sees me around. I bet she thinks I'm sneaking out of the manor. I just wanted to show her I'm actually— you know, like here." In response to Irvine's explanation, Baros raised an eyebrow unconvinced. "I just don't want to get into any trouble by not listening to Mrs. Woods rules." Irvine added quietly.

"Fine, I'll tell her you're here." Baros sighed unable to provide a good enough reason to why Irvine shouldn't prove to Sandrea that he was here. He opened the door only barely enough for him to slide in. A moment later he slid back out as indiscreetly and motioned for Irvine to enter.

Irvine allowed himself into the grand room. From the looks of the door and the rest of the manor, Irvine should've expected a palatial room. However, no amount of imagination could have prepared Irvine for the grandeur he found in Sandrea's suite. The furniture shimmered with gold trimming, huge windows expanded across the walls with thick satin curtains. The bed could have fit the entire SeeD company with room to spare, and had enough pillows for each of the eight to make a pretty bed of their own. White marble covered the floor, and small levels and stairs separated parts of the room. The bed took the highest platform, to the side was a study, by the window was a sitting area equipped with a grand fireplace kindling softly and double glass doors leading to a balcony, and lastly sat Sandrea nearby doors Irvine could only assume led to a bathhouse of a bathroom.

Smaller than the rest of the suite's designated areas was Sandrea's vanity table. A large mirror inlaid with gold and crystal lit up like a Christmas tree hung before her while a glass desk overflowed with expensive bottles and boxes of Sandrea's very necessary beauty products.

Irvine tried to stop himself from awing the magnificent suite and concentrate on the task at hand, proving to Sandrea he had no interest in any other lady. Sandrea sat with elegant poise at her table brushing her short soft curls to perfection. With a graceful hand, she laced her curls into a pony using a silken blue ribbon. She slowly turned her head and laid eyes on Irvine who slowly approached her taking one step after turning his head side to side.

"Well look who it is. Not tired from your long shift?" Sandrea greeted in not so welcoming manner. She turned her back to him and eyed his reflection through her grandiose mirror, her shifty expression plastered to her face. "What brings you here then?"

Irvine snapped out of his haze caused but the mesmerizing beauty and grandeur of the room. He looked to Sandrea's turned back and smiled, cunningly. "You, of course."

Sandrea rolled her eyes and went back to fiddling one of the many glass bottles strewn before her, filled with expensive beauty products. "You made your point very clear during our last meeting. Now if you'd be so kind I have to get ready. I'm meeting with some people about my banquet."

Coolly, Irvine swooped in close by Sandrea. Immediately as she stood up, Irvine dived in and grasped her arm, with a small tug Sandrea was snug in his arms. She looked up at him crossly. "What is it you think you're doing?"

"Sandrea, I tried fighting it and I know I was this close to breaking the other night— I mean you leave quite an impression on a fella." He brought her back to her feet and stared deeply and passionately into her eyes. "You said it yourself, we have a lot of fun together." Irvine brought his lips very close to Sandrea's, she however remained unimpressed. Barely an inch stood between their lips, Irvine breathed ever so lightly letting his breath linger on Sandrea's ever pursed lips. "Don't be mad, I just had a moment of weakness."

Expecting to have to make the next move, Irvine was taken aback when Sandrea rapidly raced her hand behind Irvine's head and pressed her lips onto his. She immediately played with his hair and wrapped her other arm around Irvine's waist. Irvine's eyes shot open, still shocked by Sandrea's spontaneous forgiveness. He was hoping this would actually take longer, what could he say? He was awfully loveable.

Irvine inched a hand passed Sandrea's neck into her soft curls. He ran his long fingers along her satin like hair tangling with the blue ribbon and releasing her curls. Sandrea moaned slightly and broke the kiss. She eyed Irvine sternly and whispered, "No time," she kissed him again passionately. Ending the kiss quickly she grasped one of the sewn chains on Irvine's SeeD uniform and dragged Irvine to her bed. Irvine's eyes widened. He hadn't expected things to happen so quickly!

She pushed the very surprised Irvine onto the soft downy mattress and quickly leapt into Irvine's reluctantly open arms. Irvine tried returning Sandrea's affection slowly, but didn't know how to handle her rapid advances. One hand still tangled with Sandrea's ribbon, Irvine let the other hand rest on her lower back nervously holding his grip there and not any lower.

"Must I do everything myself?" Sandrea whispered with a giggle in Irvine's ear as she reached a hand towards his waist.

_SON OF A GUN! WHERE THE HELL IS SEIFER!? THIS IS GETTING OUT OF HAND! _

"Mrs. Woods!"

Sandrea shot her head up and looked over towards the door of her room from where the voice arrived. She looked back at Irvine wearily. "Just our luck." Turning back to the door, she called out angrily, "What is it!"

"Mrs. Woods, you're party planner is here to see you. Shall I let her in?"  
"NO! I'm busy, reschedule!"  
"She wanted me to remind you that she's booked up and your banquet is next week."

Sandrea climbed off of Irvine, letting her feet touch the cool marble floor. She ran her fingers through her hair, undoing the tangles caused by Irvine. With an exasperated groan she called out with a bitter undertone, "Fine! Let Miss Betty Holiday in!"

Irvine came to his feet and straightened his clothing and hair. "Your party is next week? So you're commission with Garden is ending soon?" He asked trying hard to not sound so enthused.

Sandrea huffed irritably, "I don't have to leave Trabia immediately after my party! I could stay just as long as I want; it's my home too after all!" Sandrea glanced at Irvine noticing her yelling wasn't being well received. She calmed down and smiled gaily, "I just meant—ahem, there's nothing confirmed yet. After all, I rather like SeeD. I may hire you again." Sandrea pushed her newly released curls and patted down her sky blue dress. "Wouldn't that be entertaining?" Their eyes met, hers sly and mischievous, and Irvine's trying to cover his reluctance.

Irvine opened his mouth to speak against Sandrea's idea, however he was interrupted by the grand doors of the suite opening. Inside stepped a little lady with curly hair and big eyes. She walked in with an exuberant smile. "Mrs. Woods! We have much to talk about!"

Sandrea squinted her eyes and threw a wide fake smile towards the party planner. "Oh hello there. Just give me a moment here; I was just concluding my meeting with Irvine here." Facing Irvine again, Sandrea put on a sober expression, "I understand you want customized weaponry, we'll just see what we time to retrieve."

Fully aware of what Sandrea was doing, Irvine nodded and decided to play along to his favor. "I don't want to sound picky, I just know Remus and I don't shoot the same way. I have my eye on a different firearm if you'd be willing to order it for me."

Sandrea raised her eyebrow displeased. "We'll see." She replied tartly. Irvine bowed his head respectfully and turned to leave. "Oh Irvine, I would rather you stay with me today. I'll be out with Holiday here, and I would feel better to have one of my bodyguards with me."

"It's Malladay, Mrs. Woods, Betty Malladay." The little party planner quietly corrected.  
"Oh yes, whatever." Sandrea said dismissively.

Irvine smiled politely, "Of course, Mrs. Woods. I'll just go let my captain know." He bowed before Malladay as he swept passed her. "Pardon me, miss." He let himself out swiftly.

Betty grinned bashfully, "My, my! Who is that?"

Hiding her jealous grimace with a turned back, Sandrea flatly stated, "He's one of my bodyguards. Doubtless you saw others like him as you came in."

"Oh I did! Each better looking than the next! Must be wonderful to have men like that around you all day! I wish I had your fortune Mrs. Woods. I wouldn't mind a bodyguard myself, if you know what I mean!" Betty giggled excitedly, her smile wide as ever. "In fact, if you could set me up with that fellow who just walked out of here I'll discount my services for your banquet!"

Sandrea turned around sharply, "Malladay! How dare you? They are professionals, are you implying that these gentlemen are more my escorts than my bodyguards?"

"O-of course not Mrs. Woods." Betty began in a weak voice. "I mean, everyone knows how wonderful you and Mr. Woods are. I c-could never even think to accuse you of anything so scandalous!"  
"That's right!" Sandrea continued to state angrily, "My husband and I are perfectly happy like the day we married!"  
"Of course Mrs. Woods! Everyone dreams to have a life like yours." Betty agreed in slightly elevated an a volume.  
"If you cannot conduct yourself professionally in presence of my bodyguards then I shall have to remove you from the premises, do I make myself clear, Malladay?"  
"Yes, Mrs. Woods. I meant no disrespect, I-I was just engaging in playful banter."

Sandrea walked towards her vanity with an exasperated sigh. She stopped before her mirror as she eyed her rubbed off lipstick on her lips. "You do well to remember that, Malladay." She reapplied a bright pigment onto her plump lips and swept a brush through her curls. "Now, let's begin."

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine rushed back to the SeeD's quarters. To his luck Zell was there comfortably against his bed, a book in hand. "Zell! I need a favor!"

Zell tilted his head slightlty to meet Irvine's gaze and groaned miserably. "It'd be great to see you just once and not have to hear you say that." He leapt off the bed and landed loudly onto the ground. "What is it this time?"

Still up in the air from all the quick events that'd happened, Irvine gave a small quick stare at the Sandrea's ribbon, still between his fingers. "I-I uh need you to go see Selphie for me." Stuffing the ribbon in his pant pocket he looked back up at Zell pleadingly. He hated depending on Zell so much, but his favors from all the SeeDs were starting to rack up. He knew eventually they were going to start saying no to him.

"Why would I go see Selphie? Isn't that what you do all day?" Zell asked flatly.  
"I can't, I mean I want to, but I can't. San—uh Mrs. Woods wants me to escort her and her party planner for the day."  
"Escort her? You're off duty, and 'sides, that's Captain's job."  
"I know, but I can't exactly argue with her! Listen just go tell Selphie I wanted to come but couldn't. It's my second day not going and I don't want her to get worried or anything— please?"

Zell shook his head and stuck his hands in his back pockets. "I feel for you and all, but I just can't go. Plus, I'm in the middle of another favor with you. I've been researching that thing you asked about. I'm sure Selphie will be fine. It's just two days."

"I'm serious!" Irvine shouted skipping over a few emotions into anger.

"I'll go." Irvine and Zell spun around to see Squall now sitting at the foot of his bed.  
"Man, like how long were you sitting there?" Irvine asked hesitantly.  
Squall crossed his arms and shrugged, "I've been here since you ran in."  
"Gee! You should wear a bell or somethin'! You're really quiet!"

Squall stayed quiet for a moment, eyeing Irvine curiously then Zell. After a moment he shook his head and exhaled softly. "Whatever." He crossed his arms and looked away, "Anyways you wanted something?"

"Oh yeah! I need you to sneak outta here and go tell Selphie I'm busy and I'll come to see her as soon as I can."

"Seriously? That's it?" Squall spat.  
"I'd call her if she had a phone!" Irvine retorted defensively.  
"Fine, I'm bored anyways. How do I get there?"

Irvine grinned widely. "Squall! I always though you were kind of cold, you do have a heart! Thanks!" Irvine spun quickly to Zell ignoring Squall's off put face. "I still need your help Zell, go to the watch tower and distract Remus so Squall can get outta here."

Zell rolled his eyes, "You're still dragging me into this?" He pressed his fists together. "How do you expect to distract him anyways?"

"Just talk to him about— anything! You're good at that." Irvine smiled and began to head out of the room with Squall. He shot a thankful smile at Zell and closed the door behind him. Zell darted his eyes angrily at Irvine's tracks and groaned.

"How'd we let Kinneas run the show?"

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine tried to forge a smile as he dragged himself back to Sandrea's suite. On his way he noticed a big commotion at the mouth the hallway. Captain Alexston, Nida, and Seifer circled what appeared to be a broken vase.

"Almasy what the hell is wrong with you!" Alexston hissed. "This vase might cost more than your yearly salaray!"

Seifer rolled his head lazily towards Irvine who passed by slowly. "I just don't know, Captain." Seifer spoke slowly letting every constant pass his lips with anger. "Just didn't notice it there."

"How can I even explain this to Mrs. Woods?" Baros ran his hands through his hair nervously and paced. "How much do you think it was?"

Nida shrugged and knelt down picking up a piece or two gingerly. "Porcelain, although I don't see any gold trimming. May only be half a year's salary depending on where she got it, of course."

Before Baros could panic more, the doors of the grand suite opened and Sandrea with the party planner, Betty, appearing. Baros along with the other SeeD's immediately jumped into formation and saluted. Irvine quickly stood by Sandrea and saluted as well. "Why gentlemen, I heard such a commotion. What's wrong? Is someone hurt?"

"Not exactly, Mrs. Woods. It seems w-we, I meant that uh one of us broke your vase." Baros uttered nearly about to faint in anticipation of Sandrea's reaction.

Sandrea raised her eyebrow in disdain, "A vase?"

Irvine rolled his eyes, as no one faced him at the moment. _Man Seifer, talk about late. If that Betty chick hadn't come I'd seriously been screwed. _"Mrs. Woods," Irvine said quietly watching Baros's face turn from stress to downright sick from worry.

"Yes Irvine?" Sandrea turned around passively.  
"I broke the vase when I went to tell Captain Soma I'd be escorting you. You can dock it from my pay, ma'am."

Sandrea swept past Baros and looked at the shattered porcelain strewn against the marble floor. "Well it's nothing special to me. I say it was an innocent accident, no reason to penalize you gentlemen." She smiled at the small troup. "Have it cleaned up before I return if you don't mind, Captain Alexston."

"O-of course Mrs. Woods. Thank you for understanding."

"Not at all. Come along then Malladay, Irvine." Sandrea brushed her curls behind her head and walked on coolly, Betty and Irvine closely behind.

Irvine glance out one the many large windows in the hall. The graceful snow fell gently outside. _Squall— don't get lost._ He sighed remorsely with small guilty tug in his gut pulling at him as he thought of little Selphie alone in the cabin in the middle of nowhere anxiously awaiting his arrival.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Selphie twiddled her toes impatiently as she stared at the floor. Her time alone had become increasingly boring after being accustomed to Irvine's visits, and the dreams of him before that. She tried to sleep, but the excitement of seeing Irvine kept her turning back and forth. She sat up straight and looked outside the window the blank field outside.

_There's nothing out there for miles_… Selphie sighed. With all the blankness outside, she wondered how Irvine even came to find her little cabin. Too happy he did, the thought left her quickly. Selphie fell back onto the bed with a loud flop. "I'm so bored!" She cried out sadly.

A knock sounded at the floor causing Selphie to leap right out her place in surprise. She crashed on the floor on the clumsily, her head shooting up towards the door immediately after impact. "Irvine!" She shouted happily. She scrambled to her feet and rushed to the door and pulled it open. Without even a second to acknowledge the person outside she leapt out and threw her arms around an unsuspecting Squall. "Oooh you're finally here!"

"How'd you know **I** was coming?" Squall asked quietly.

Selphie blinked and loosened her grip around Squall. Still out in the cold, she didn't push him away as she registered the voice she'd just heard. It wasn't Irvine she was hugging, and come to think of it, the man she was hugging was shorter than Irvine as well. Also, he didn't have Irvine's familiar scent of gunpowder and cologne. Selphie slowly let go of the man looked Squall in the eye. Not to mention, the man she was hugging was not returning her embrace at all, unlike Irvine who would have merrily kissed her by now. She opened her mouth to ask who he was only to be interrupted by his frank comment.

Squall looked around with a blank expression. "Aren't you cold?" He asked after a moment of awkward eyecontact with Selphie.

"Oh, right." She replied in almost a whisper. Selphie turned around and walked back into the cabin. Squall followed slowly and closed the door behind her. As the door closed, Selphie turned around and carefully glanced at the man. He seemed so familiar. His mysterious gray eyes, his handsome face, and his distinct scar came across with a wave of nostolagia.

Squall crossed his arms, looked away for a moment and then returned his view back to Selphie. "Irvine asked me to come. He wanted me to let you know that he couldn't make it today." He paused as if waiting for a reply. When Selphie said nothing, rather just continued glaring at him curiously, he concluded with: "That's it. Bored with the entire rundown of the scene, Squall shrugged and turned around to leave.

"Squall," Selphie said softly.

Squall didn't say anything, but he stopped and waited for Selphie to continue speaking.

"It's so nice you came—just to tell me that. It's really sweet. Didn't know you were like that Squall! I guess Rinoa has made you into a real softy." Selphie giggled sweetly. "I'm glad you came." Squall nodded and continued to walk to the door. "Oh and Squall?" He stopped again, to this, Selphie rushed up and hugged him from the back.

"… you know I'm not Irvine this time, right?" Squall asked flatly.  
"Oh Squall." Selphie giggled again. "Of course I do! I just wanted to say— thanks."  
"For what?"  
"You wouldn't understand, but you helped me, a lot. Probably more than I could even tell you. So thanks."

Squall turned around and crossed his arms. He looked away and pondered to himself in silence for a moment. Finally he uncrossed his arms and shook his head. "Whatever." He flicked his hand behind him, "So are you coming back to Garden?"

Selphie shook her head, memories were flooding into her mind. "I-I uh. I don't know."  
Squall shrugged. "Well I came to do what I needed to do." He turned away to leave again.  
"Bye Squall." Selphie watched as Squall silently left the cabin. A smile touched her lips. _Thanks again, Squall._

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

After hours of errands all over the streets of Trabia, Irvine relished the return to his stuffy quarters. He threw himself onto his bed glad the time with Sandrea and Betty overhearing tedious party details were behind for the time being. However, Sandrea didn't look pleased with him. Every spare moment that Betty went a different direction, Sandrea glared at Irvine as if still upset that their intimate moment this morning was interrupted.

Irvine didn't want to pay attention to Sandrea's behavior, he was far more anxious in going to see Selphie. Every fiber in his being wanted to rush through the gates and run straight himself to Selphie's cabin, but with all his awkward encounters for the day, Irvine couldn't risk being absent if Sandrea called on him again.

_Where's Squall? Did he get my message to her? Did he find the place okay?_ Irvine swung himself to the side of the bed. "Where is everyone anyways?"

As if their ears were burning, as Irvine spoke his thought aloud, Zell entered the room. A book and magazine were tucked carefully under his arm as he approached Irvine. He waved one his massive hands in the air. "Kinneas, hey, you're back. That wasn't too long."

"Easy for you to say, you weren't there." Irvine replied snappishly. He flicked his head towards the book and magazine Zell rested on his bed. "What's all that then?"

Zell sat himself down and smiled widely, the type of smile he shined right before he began a lecture of his good knowledge. "Well remember when you asked me to look into Selphie's forgetting thing? Well I might've found something!"

"Really?" Irvine's eyes widened. Although Selphie didn't seem to be lying, he didn't actually believe something so outlandish existed. Zell excitedly held an old magaizine. Irvine stared at it curiously reading its name aloud with disbelief, "Occult Fan? Come on Zell, I thought you meant something serious."

"Hey! Just give me a second Zell pulled out the book and opened it to a dogtailed page. "I was reading up on memory loss and look what I found." Irvine hesitantly grapsed the book by its cover, skimming the contents of the open page. "Have you ever heard of the controversy over using G.F.? There used to be a huge protest against it because they said using G.F. could affect your mind. Well it can, your memories!"

Irvine looked at Zell with disbelief. "Selphie never had a G.F., she's not a SeeD. Not even close! I highly doubt she has one now."

"Okay well if you'll listen for a minute Mr. Impatient, I'll get to the good part. Anyways it says in here that when a G.F. is used, depending on what it is used for it releases a chemical that only affects the hippocampus." Irvine looked at Zell dumbly. "Meaning, it only affects memories." Pleased, Irvine nodded. "So the greater the action of the G.F. the greater release of the chemical. Now, in this book, they state that even a lifetime of G.F. use would probably not cause permanent memory loss, at least no one has used one enough in history. So it makes sense that Garden never restricted its use. But—" Zell closed the book and pulled out the Occult Fan. "According to this article, a pharmaceutical company was rumoured to be working on a synthetic version of this chemical that's stronger in concentration and can cause actual memory loss, permanently!"

Irvine's eyes widened in surprise, "Do you think that's what it is?"

"Well, it really sounds like it. Look at these testimonies of people who supposedly in the trial." Zell continued pointing at a specific column on the page. Irvine read it aloud.

"I remember the medicine perfectly, it was clear—just like water. Didn't taste like it though. Bitter, it was really bitter. And cold! Everytime they gave it to me. I asked if they could warm it and I watched them warm it, it still felt like I was drinking ice." Irvine stopped reading. "Zell, this sounds exactly like what Selphie was describing! But, I don't get it. Why make something like that? And if they did, and Selphie drank it, how'd she remember me?"

Zell nodded excited ready to answer Irvine's questions. "I thought about that too. Apparently the draught was aimed at helping victims of trauma and bad events. It was supposed to be a miracle drink. According to the article though, the pharmecuetical company stopped the trials because they couldn't come up with an effective dose. Something kept triggering test patients to remember the trials."

"Like what?"

"Small things, a painting that they never noticed before. The receptionist at the office they first came into. It was always something insignificant that made them remember everything the drink made them forget. They kept highering the doses until they learned that it had a lethal dose. It sent one of the trial subjects into a coma. They were closed down after that."

Irvine turned his head taking in all the information and related it to Selphie. For whatever reason she drank the potion, there was no need to worry about remembering anything because no triggers from Balamb were around to distract her. Well that is until he showed up. _Zell said they were insignificant things, so Sephie could barely remember my name and nothing else because—_Irvine smiled to himself – _I'm too big of deal to her. _"That still doesn't explain where Selphie would've gotten that drink from if it is the same one." Irvine concluded aloud.

"Well the article does close mentioning that another company in a different country bought the project to finish themselves. The other country had fewer regulations about trials and they were allowed to continue the research on it. Since it's the Occult Fan, no real names are given—so I still have no clue where Selphie could've gotten it, but she must know someone who works at the company."

Irvine sat down disheartened. Zell had successfully answered his questions, but he still didn't know how to help Selphie retrieve her memories. With her memory loss he still wouldn't be able to find out why exactly she left Garden.

_It doesn't matter she left, I just gotta get her back._ Irvine nodded in agreement with his mental note. If he brought Selphie back to Garden, what would matter of her leaving anyways? She'd find something to trigger her memories, but even if she didn't—what did it matter anymore? She remembered him, and that's all he actually cared about. "I need to get Selphie to come home with me."

Zell crossed his arms as he leaned against a nearby wall. "How are you going to do that? Do you even know why she left? She might not have liked it there and used the drink to forget about it."

"That isn't it!"  
"How can you be so sure?" Zell asked manner-of-factly.  
"Eh, it doesn't matter. If I bring her back to Garden something will trigger her to remember everyone."

"Remember who?"

Zell and Irvine quickly turned their attention to the entrance of the dorm where Squall now stood. Zell scratched the back of his head uncomfortably and Irvine turned side to side avoid eye contact. "Who're you guys talking about?" Squall repeated, uncharacteristically interested in someone else's conversations.

"What's with all the questions Squall? Chill!" Irvine said with a forced chuckle.

Zell shook his head and sighed, "We're talking about Selphie. I mean— you just came from there. Didn't you notice she was a little absent minded? Irvine and I think she drank some potion that make her forget her memory."

Squall crossed his arms and looked away. After a moment of quiet awkwardness he turned back to Zell and Irvine with a rather confused glance. "She seemed fine to me."

"Gee Squall, I always thought since you were quiet you might be like observant or something. You don't catch on to much do ya?" Irvine teasingly leaned against Squall's shoulder.

"I meant— she seemed to remember just fine. She even talked about Rinoa." Squall added quietly.

Irvine leapt back shocked. "What? She actually **remembers** you?" He gasped. His eyes were wide open with the fear that haunted the back of his mind since he first heard of his commission to Trabia. Did Selphie not want to be with him? Was her memory loss a farce?

Zell, who also looked surprised, or confused, sat down and thought for a moment. Squall looked from Irvine to Zell back and forth with a glare of anger. "Are you saying you sent me to see Selphie under the belief she wouldn't even know who I was?"

With a snap of his finger, and a complete disregard to Squall's comment, Zell jumped to his feet. "Kinneas! Do you realize what happened?"

"Selphie's playing a sick joke?" Irvine asked disheartenedly, but with a small hope in the back of his mind that it was true.

"No you idiot! Think about it, she barely remembers a thing about much of anything before getting to Trabia, and Squall comes in for one minute and all of the sudden it comes back to her! Squall's the insignificant detail!"

Irvine's heart jumped with relief. "You're right!" He rushed up to Squall and threw his long arms around Squall, who is noticeably shorter than he. "You're great Squall!"

Squall stood motionless and expressionless. "Why do people keep doing this to me?" Irvine released his grip and smiled nervously.

"Sorry about that Squall." He rubbed his neck and turned away bashfully. "Just got kind of excited." After the moment passed, Irvine zoomed to the dorm exit.

"Kinneas!" Zell shouted after him. "Where the hell do you think you're going? Your shift starts in a couple of hours!"

Irvine braced himself with the frame of the door pausing his rapid speed. He turned around, a huge smile spread across his face. "Didn't ya hear? Selphie remembers me! I gotta go see her! Plus I already didn't go yesterday."

"After I just went to tell her that you weren't coming?" Squall commented flatly.  
"I would say I'm sorry, but I'm not! See ya guys!" With that, Irvine was gone from sight.

"He's going to get us all killed, isn't he?" Asked Squall monotously.  
"Yeah… kinda seems that way." Zell agreed with an exasperated sigh.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Irvine nearly ran the entire trip to Town Square and passed to the lonesome snow field where Selphie's cabin remained silent and unnoticeable to the rest of the world. Not even appearing tired, Irvine rushed to the door and banged until it opened.

Selphie was hesitant to open to the banging, not expecting any other visitors for the day. As soon as she unlocked the door and ever so slightly turned the knob it swung open powerfully and Irvine swooped grasping Selphie by the waist and kissing her so fast she didn't even comprehend who it was who'd entered. As soon as their kiss ended, Irvine returned Selphie to her feet and gazed into her eyes, joy nearly exploding out.

"Ir-Irvy!" She cried out excitedly.

"Oh Hyne I never thought I'd hear ya call me that again! Oh babe I'm so happy you remember everything!" He kissed her again, taking her by surprise. So excited he pushed her back to the nearest wall.

Between kisses Selphie managed to slip out, "Irvy—I'm—so—happy—too— wait a minute." Selphie pushed Irvine away and looked at him sternly. "Does that mean you weren't happy when you first found me?"

"Heh," Irvine rubbed his neck uncomfortably, "'course not gorgeous. It's just now— uh now you can tell me why you left Balamb! The suspense has been killing me." Irvine's 'quick' thinking wasn't actually the brightest idea. A part of him still didn't want to know why Selphie left. "You know what though? Forget it! Not important! What is important is getting you back to Garden." Irvine grasped Selphie's wrist and walked towards the door.

"Irvy wait!" Selphie struggled to pull her hand free. "Irvine give me a second!"

Irvine stopped, his heart stinking with the frightening feeling that Zell's theorys were right. "Selphie, what's wrong?"

Selphie's joyful appearance fell instantly as tears filled her eyes. She turned away and softly spoke, "Irvy I'm happy I remember everything too, but it might've been better if I hadn't ever remembered. Now that I do, I know I can't go back—never."

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Devin sat in his study gazing over the business section of his newspaper. He detested lounging about the manor, but while Sandrea made her annual trips to Trabia he made it a point to be available for whenever she wanted to go for an outing with her. Smiling for the few paparazzi in Trabia were simple enough. It happened so rarely.

"Oh Devin, you're going to love this gala! I've invited everyone." Sandrea burst through the doors of the study with a great smile, Betty Malladay rushing behind her with stacks of papers. Sandrea sat herself on the edge of Devin's desk and crossed her legs. "I invited everyone, and I do mean everyone! You know who finally agreed to come?"

"Surprise me." Devin mumbled unamused.

Sandrea rattled her hand on the desk causing Devin to look away from his paper with an aggravated look. "Sorceress Edea Kramer! Her and her husband are always so busy but they actually agreed this year. This will truly be the biggest event of the the year, and here in Trabia! Who would of thought! Check outside to see if Wendigos haven't sprout wings to fly!"

While Sandrea pratteled on about how having some event of true signifance hosted in Trabia was the most unusual thing to happen, Devin sat in thought about the guest mentioned guest list. "Sorceress Edea, she is the Headmistress at that—Balamb Garden, am I correct?"

"Yes that's right, or her husband is. Oh it doesn't matter they're school administrators. They're title is irrelevant. The only thing that is important is that they're coming!"

Devin looked sharply at Sandrea who beamed in thought. He politely smiled at Malladay and curtly said, "Would you mind leaving us for a moment?" Mallday looked up with wide eyed and confused. She grasped her papers and left.

With the room privately containing just just Sandrea and himself, he turned to his wife and scowled. "Uninvite them."

Sandrea raised an eyebrow. "You know I only invite the most important people to my gatherings, and I will not uninvited such special guests! As it is, what do you have against the Kramers?"

"I said," Devin spoke tartly with a dark glare, "UNinvite them."

Sandrea met his eyes coldly, "I'll do nothing of the sort Devin, and don't you even think about escaping this. I don't know what bothers you about Edea Kramer, but get over yourself because you and I have an accord. You will play my happy husband for the few weeks I spend here and you'll be pleased for it!" She came to her feet with grace. Pushing her soft curls back flauntily so, she turned around sharply not giving Devin the liberty to argue with her.

Devin's view stayed still watching Sandrea's trail with fuming anger. How could he possibly face Headmaster Cid and his wife without Selphie becoming a mention? He could possibly manage to avoid them, but Sandrea's knowledge of his distress probably would ensure she'd introduce the two. Devin wasn't left long to ponder Sandrea's gala as a servant came in and interrupted his thoughts.

"Sir," He became sheepishly.

"WHAT IS IT?!" Devin roared focusing back to his current settings.

"My apologies, sir, I-I just came to tell you someone is here to see you. He says he has private business with you that needs attending." The servant quickly finished his message without even a breath between.

Devin scowled with discontent. "His name?"

"He didn't offer it sir. He only said that it was important he see you."

"Fine, let him in."

Devin shifted uncomfortably not particularly happy about the unanoucned visitor. There were only a handful of people who either asked discretion, or Devin desired discretion from. Either way, Sandrea's presence in Trabia usually put a pause on those relationships.

The manservant reentered with a small man in shabby clothing that Devin recognized. He came to his feet and met the man at the door hastily. Before anyone uttered a word of welcome, Devin looked darkly at the manservant and growled, "I need some privacy." Within a fraction of a second the servant left the room and closed the door behind him.

Devin looked back at the new arrival crossly. He knew him as the grocer he hired to supply Selphie's cabin. He normally arrived to manor for secretive payment, but Devin rarely crossed paths with him all the same. With Sandrea possibly reentering at any moment he grew irritatble with the grocer instantly.

"What do you want?!" He hissed.  
"I thought you should take a look at this month's bill, sir." The grocer answered promptly.  
"Why would I want to do that? Are you not getting paid?"  
"That's not it sir, it's just unusual. I thought it may be worth your attention."

Devin glared at the man, his tense mood slowly receeding as he did know this man to be only person checking on Selphie in his absence. He snatched the paper haughtily and looked over the statement. The first two weeks showed a balance of zero, the third week jumped to a bill of 300 gil. To Devin, 300 gil was pennies. The statement brought no concern to him. Not having seen many statements since the whole arrangement started, Devin lifted an eyebrow and held it towards him. "You'll have to explain why this information is of any value to my time."

"Don't you see, sir?" The grocer pointed to the numbers. "The girl didn't eat anything for a weeks. I thought she was dead sometimes, but she turned out to just be sleeping. I can see she's eating now, or maybe she just started throwing the food out. Maybe she's sick, sir."

Taking in the information with calm disposition, Devin eyed the grocer carefully. "I never want to see you back in this house with a paper holding this kind information again, do I make my point clear?"

"Sir?"  
"Get out of my house this minute and if you ever want payment again, never bring a receipt." Devin clarified darkly. The grocer nodded feverently and scrambled backwards. He spun around and threw back the grand door and exited without another word, just a few sheepish gasps.

With the grocer gone, Devin took a look at the statement again. Obviously in the time that Selphie had been here she hadn't made such an unusal eating pattern. Perhaps his absence wasn't settling well with her. "I believe a visit may need to be in order."

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

"Wha— what do you mean you can't?" Irvine felt as if he'd started choking on his own tongue. Selphie wiped her forming tears from her eyes and sat down on the bed. Her back stiff and feet shuffling on the floor, she appeared incredibly anxious.

"I don't know how to explain it to you. It's probably best if I don't. You just gotta know, I have to stay here no, from now on." She shut her eyes to avoid eye contact with Irvine as she dug her fingers into the side of the bed. "Just please, if you care about me, you'll leave me here."

Irvine stood appalled and almost to shocked to move. He shook his head trying to stay out of his haunted thoughts that plagued him since the day Selphie mysteriously left Garden. "Selphie, I-I can't just leave you. You got to at least tell me, is it something I did? Or maybe someone else did? What happened?"

Selphie came to her feet a look of worry consuming her face. "Oh Irvy no!" She fisted her little hands over her chest and shifted from foot to foot as she shook her head. "Please Irvy, don't say thigns like that."

"Selphie, I don't know what to think. I thought we were finally in a good place you and me. Then one day I come back to see you, and you're gone— forever." He looked up at her, his eyes pained by the memory of that first day when he read Selphie's simplistic letter. "You owe me an explanation!" He raised his voice, his pain finally breaking out into something closer to anger.

"I can't," Selphie said meekly. Irvine slowly advanced toward her, his face bearing a angry and hurt scowl. "You have to believe me, I want to to tell you." She continued softly, her voice breaking. Irvine easily pushed her until her back met the wall. Irvine placed a hand on either side of her head, palms flat on the wall. His face hovered over hers.

"You owe me that much." He whispered, his voice almost livid.

Selphie lifted her head to see Irvine's now fuming stare on her. She could almost feel the heat of his irriation. Scared to tell, and scared not to tell, Selphie turned her head and exhaled loudly. "I know you deserve that— but I still can't tell you." Selphie watched as Irvine lifted one of his hands from the wall and lifted it. She closed her eyes tightly sure that it was a blow meant for her.

The vibration from Irvine's fist against the wall shook her head slightly as Selphie opened her eyes to see the small uneven dent created. Irvine moved away and sat on the bed, lowering his head over his knees, defeated. "I've wasted my time here." He said flaltly.

Selphie stayed quiet not sure what could possibly be comforting to say at the moment.

"I don't know what do to now…" The room became awkwardly quiet and still. Still hunched over pathetically, Irvine said in a quiet and sad voice, "I love you, Selphie."

Selphie stood lost for words as she looked at the poor disheartened positioned on the side of her bed. In years of life, she couldn't the last time she ever heard those words. Her lips parted wanting to reply, when no words followed she walked up to Irvine and knelt by him. She placed her hands gently on his cheeks and raised his gaze. She looked into his miserable eyes and kissed him. She kissed him as she never kissed anyone before. All her passion and desire sunk into her one action. She pushed Irvine against bed and lay on top of him kissing him as deeply as she could. Her arms wrapped around his neck as she slowly felt Irvine finally returning her embrace.

No more words, what else was there really to say?

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

"Shift changes in an hour." Zell looked at his watch hopelessly. "You know, I'm really starting to regret ever helping that stupid cowboy."

"He's only been stressing you out; I couldn't care less about him." Seifer relaxed his bed, his arms pillowing his head as he stared at the ceiling coolly and unconcerned. He propped himself up to see Zell pacing anxiously before his bed. "You should try that chicken-wuss, it'd do you a world of good."

Zell fisted his hands angrily, "The hell man! Stop calling me that!" Seifer laugh evilly watching Zell spin madly out of control.

"Would you guys be quiet? I got a headache."

Both Zell and Seifer dropped their little faux fight and turned the door to see Irvine dragging himself inside rubbing his temples with irritation. "What the hell happened to you?" Seifer asked with contempt.

"I'm just tired." Irvine walked miserably to his bed and plopped onto it releasing a bounding sound of the springs pushing against his weight.

"I'LL BE AS LOUD AS I WANT KINNEAS! I DON'T OWE YOU A DAMN THING!" Zell shouted frustrated beyong belief.

"DINTCH! SHUT THE HELL UP!" Captain Tag Soma exclaimed as he entered the room. "What in Hyne's name is going on here?"

"Chicken-wuss is trying to be an ass." Seifer chuckled to himself watching Zell bashfully sneak to his bed.

Tag rolled his eyes umimpressed by Seifer's joke and looked around to Zell and Irvine in the room. "The Missus and her husband are going out tonight and Baros isn't feeling well so one of you will have to take his place. So decied amongst yourselves and make yourself available when shift starts." With that, Tag left the room, probably the deliver the message to the rest of his crew.

"Watch out, Kinneas. Maybe Mrs. Woods will ask for you to go." Zell teased.  
"Yeah, maybe." Irvine said softly.

Everyone seemed peeved with Irvine and his constant need for favors and cover ups. So much so that no seemed to care that Irvine looked even more down than before he came to Trabia. When shift started, the men headed out to their positions. Zell volunteered to the group he wanted to go with the Captain, but Irvine had a feeling Sandrea would still ask him to come.

Knowing that Zell would tell the Captain of his volunteerism, Irvine went ahead and took his post in the watch tower. He sat lazily with the sniper rifle loosely in his grip. A hazy daze went over his eyes as looked to the large windows of the tower. Althought his eyes faced the window, he didn't actually see through it. His vision stopped at the almost visible reflection of himself in the clean windows.

He continued to stare at himself miserably as he thought about Selphie.

_Selphie pushed Irvine against the bed kissing him more deeply than he'd ever recalled her doing. She held herself closely to him, clinging by her arms around his neck. Unsure of how to respond, Irvine slowly put his arms around her small waist relishing Selphie over him._

_ A moment or two passed and Irvine turned Selphie to lay on her side looking into her eyes. He held out his hand and brushed her cheek of a few stray hairs. He thought about how much he'd hoped this moment would come with Selphie, but suddenly, he didn't want it. He sat up and abruptly said, "I have to go."_

_ Selphie let out some sort of sound born of her shock, but it didn't faze Irvine as he left and rushed back to the manor._

Irvine heard a sound behind him. Even though, instinctively he should've stood up armed, he was pretty sure it was probably one of the other SeeDs and lazily came to his feet. To his surprise, Sandrea stood at the door. She smiled sassily at him and rolled her head slowly against the line of her fur coat.

"Happy to see me?" She asked in lustful voice regarding to Irvine's shocked appearance.

"I heard you had dinner plans." Irvine replied flatly.

"They can wait." Sandrea whispered gliding over to Irvine. He slowly backed up against the wall unsure if it was really safe to respond to her advances. The Captain would probably come looking for Sandrea, and he wouldn't be able to talk his way out of holding Mrs. Woods from her dinner plan. Irvine looked at Sandrea's flirtatious expression. He ran a single finger her soft curls and forced an image of Selphie over Sandrea's face and smiled innocently, a more innocent look than he ever gave Sandrea. He slowly brought his head in and kissed her softly.

From the corner of his eye, Irvine noticed a figure heading towards the tower. He broke the kiss gently and turned his head to the side getting a better look. "What's wrong?" Sandrea asked, always unhappy to meet with reluctance.

Irvine grabbed the rifle and looked through his scope. Mr. Woods was nearing the tower. "It's your husband." He said in such hushed tone, it almost sounded like a whisper.

"Oh fi, it seems playtime is over." Sandrea said sadly. "Very well, come to dinner with us tonight."

"Zell already volunteered to go with the Captain." Irvine feigned a sly smile, "And besides I couldn't watch you making nice with him all night when you should be with me."

Sandrea laughed, pleased. "Oh well, that is a shame. After all Irvine, if there's one thing I've learned in life it's this—" She walked to the doorway and paused, glancing back with smile she said articulating every word, "Nothing is promised in this world, but if something were to be, it'd be the present."

"The present?" Irvine sneered in disdain. His present wasn't exactly ideal.  
"Exactly, the present." Sandrea turned to leave, "The present is all we truly have."

Irvine listened as Sandrea's heels clicked down the stairs. Sandrea's words repeated in his mind. _"The present is all we truly have." _There were but a couple of things Sandrea and Irvine agreed about: Irvine's handsomeness, and now this. Even if Selphie would return to Balamb, the future is no guarantee. Why worry about the future when you can at least enjoy the present? Presently, there is a girl in Trabia that he loves, and wants to be with.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

"Ah Sandrea, there you are. I have to cancel our dinner plans. Something's come up." Devin said as he saw Sandrea emerge from the tower.

Sandrea shifted her glance irritably, "Whatever it is, you may attend to it afterwards. I am not canceling dinner on the mayor again. You look dressed well enough, turn around and let us be off."

"Sandrea, this isn't a matter of discussion, I have urgent business." Devin repeated sternly.

"Oh Devin, you're absolutely right. This **isn't** up for discussion. Now let us be off." She huffed into the cold Trabian evening air and trotted off towards the front of the manor, her heels clicking against the walkway. Devin rolled his eyes as he begrudgingly followed.

From his watch tower, Irvine watched as the couple gathered into the car with Zell, Tag, and chauffeur. As soon as they drove away and darted out of the property. He went down the familiar route passed Town Square to the lonely snow field and its one occupant, a small cabin.

Irvine knocked on the door and as expected Selphie answered. She looked at him shocked, "Irvy, what are you—" She was interrupted by a kiss from Irvine.

As soon as their lips parted, Irvine smiled and whispered, "I came to finish what we started."

"_Can miles truly separate you from friends... If you want to be with someone you love, aren't you already there?"__  
_**_-_**_Richard Bach_


End file.
